


rnmk anthology

by yoshizora



Category: Love Live! School Idol Project
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-09
Updated: 2017-11-21
Packaged: 2018-06-07 08:47:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 70
Words: 34,028
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6797239
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yoshizora/pseuds/yoshizora
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>a collection of rinmaki shorts.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. homework

**Author's Note:**

> edit: as of 2018 the collection is considered complete, since i'm no longer writing for love live. thank you for reading!

“Maki-chan!!”

Rin’s bursting with panicked urgency and she practically falls atop Maki’s desk, messing the papers and pencils that Maki had just taken out of her bag. Maki calmly regards her and recollects her things one at a time. The day hasn’t even officially started yet, and this already has to be dealt with.

“Yes, Rin?” Maki says after a long, deliberate pause.

“Lemme copy your homework, nya!”

This again. Full of distaste and disapproval, Maki snatches her workbook away from Rin’s creeping hands and whacks her on the forehead with it. Of course, a stack of papers can’t deal any damage, but Rin recoils anyway.

“No.”

“But Maki-chan—!”

“I thought you would’ve learned your lesson from last time.” Without bothering to even look at her face (Rin would no doubt be putting on her best pout, now), Maki resumes shuffling her papers around with no real intent. “Besides, I already helped you with understanding the lesson, so you should’ve been able to do the homework on your own.”

“But…!” She’s whining like a broken record. Her persistence is certainly something to behold, though. “It isn’t entirely Rin’s fault, you know?! It’s not like I had much time last night, since you were distracting me with all that stuff you were—“

Maki loudly coughs, sputters, and chokes, not necessarily in that order. Oh wonderful, several of their classmates are looking at them now. She plants a hand over Rin’s mouth before she can continue babbling and futilely tries to push her away. “K-Keep it down, Rin!”

“Mmphhfh?!”

“You can’t talk about _that_ stuff in school, you-! Ugh, whatever! Copy my homework, just stop talking!”

“Okaaay!” Rin snaps back to her normal cheer, but there’s an unmistakeable curl to the ends of her smile that makes Maki want to scream. Their peers are still staring. Maki glares back at them, face burning.


	2. snowy evening

It’s cold, which isn’t a terribly exciting way of putting it, but it _is_ cold. Dusty snow is even starting to layer and the flurries dance under the streetlights. Rin’s dancing too, sort of, jumping to and fro excitedly while Maki slowly follows with her arms wrapped around herself.

“Slow down,” Maki calls for maybe the thirtieth time this evening. “You’re going to slip.”

Rin, always the overenthusiastic gymnast, does a cartwheel and a flip and lands on her feet with a big silly grin. _Without_ slipping. She pokes her tongue out and jogs backwards and forwards just to annoy Maki.

“D’you think it’s gonna be snowing more tonight?! Maybe we can make a snowman tomorrow! Or go sledding! Or drink hot chocolate, nya!”

“We can drink hot chocolate even if it doesn’t snow.” Maki points out.

“Yeah, but it’s about the experience!”

Winter means a lot of things. To Rin, it means playing in the snow then cuddling inside with a hot drink to recharge for more snowball fights. She’s just like a little kid… although Maki is, too; she’s already preparing the fireplace for Santa-san a couple weeks in advance. But Rin never points it out, so she remains the childish one of the two. It does wonders for Maki’s ego, believing that she’s mature and in charge.

“Rin!” Maki calls again, quickening her pace to keep up with Rin’s frolicking. “I’m serious! The ground’s slippery!”

Her warnings go unheeded. Rin, still without a care in the world, attempts to do more cartwheels. Bad idea. There’s a shallow puddle she hadn’t noticed and with a startled yelp she goes skidding, surely to crash painfully on her face if she’s not fast enough to break the fall with her hands—

But a pair of arms suddenly catches her and stops that from ever happening. Rin’s breathing hard. Maki is, too, though she’s also seething. “I _told_ you! Jeez, this is why you need to listen to me!”

“M-Maki-chan…” With gleaming eyes, Rin slowly adjusts herself and turns to face her, still cradled in Maki’s arms. She’s practically sparkling, but that might be the light reflecting off the snowflakes caught on her eyelashes. “You saved my life! My knight in shining armor…!”

Maki unceremoniously drops Rin. 

Then she yanks her back up to her feet, shrugging off her own jacket and forcefully putting it over the smaller girl’s shoulders before Rin can protest to being manhandled. “It was _nothing_. Stop being embarrassing.”

“Kyaaa, Maki-chan’s even lending Rin her jacket-!”

“What did I just say?!”

They hold hands the rest of the way home as the snow continues to fall.


	3. bees knees

“ _Why_ ,” Maki harshly breathes out, cradling her forehead in her hand. “Why would you ever need this many, Rin.”

“Weeell, I was looking for a shiny one, but there’s a ton of Weedle in the forest, right? So I figured, if I caught all the Weedle around, eventually a shiny would show up! So Rin was catching and catching and catching and—“

And she completely lost sight of what she was even doing, right. That’s how it always goes. Maki wonders why the hell Rin was even carrying that many empty Pokeballs with her.

“Then before I knew it, after a few days they all evolved! So here they are! Rin’s cute buggy family!”

The trees are so dense with Kakuna that the branches are drooping. Maki half shudders, half cries on the inside, and contemplates having her Braixen set all of it on fire. Burn it all down. Please. Rin looks too damn pleased about all those Kakuna, too, arms spread wide and a stupid grin on her face.

Maki fumes. “You’re disgusting!”

“Nya?!”

One of the Kakuna wobbles, and like ripples in a pond more around it shift as well.

“Rin, get rid of those! _Now!_ ”

“B-but, ah, well, you see… it’d take such a long time to release each one, a-and all those Pokeballs going to waste would be a shame…”

“You couldn’t have thought about that before going on that Weedle-catching spree?!”

The Kakuna are making dry noises now and the trees are nearly creaking from the collective movement. Maki’s hand automatically goes to her Braixen’s Pokeball, but Rin stops her.

“Noooo! Maki-chan, I always wanted a Beedrill! They’re so cool and fast! Please don’t kill them!”

“But you’re gonna have a hundred Beedrill now, you idiot!”

“Yeah, but isn’t that exciting?!”

Oh, god, they’re evolving now. Maki _shrieks_ and begins to pound at Rin with her fists, still shouting stuff about getting rid of them. Rin, to her credit, neither backs off nor retaliates, shouting back and trying to shield herself with her arms.

Then the Beedrill emerge and begin to swarm around them in a hellish swirl of unholy insects. Maki screams some more. 


	4. stray dog

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original prompt: _"What a minute are you jealous" with rinpana or rinmaki the jealous one bein rins partner_

Papa taught her that stray dogs are dirty and shouldn’t be touched, because they could be carrying _diseases_ and _fleas_ and other nasty things. Maki tries to pass the lesson on to Rin, but Rin clearly has no interest in staying hygienic or heeding her warning.  

“Aww, he’s just got a little dirt on him! It’s okay!” Rin laughs. The dog licks her face and Maki cringes away from the two. 

“You don’t know where that tongue’s even been.”

But of course, she isn’t listening. “Look, he likes me!” 

Maki stomps her foot but the dog is ignoring her too. Rin’s mussing the dog’s coat and gladly letting it plant wet dog kisses on her face while its scraggly tail wags a mile a minute. 

… When she looks at it a little closely, it’s actually sort of cute. In a _gross scruffy stray mutt_ kind of way. 

Like Rin.

Oh, god, the dog’s starting to remind her of _Rin_. 

“Let’s go already. People are starting to stare.” No one’s even glancing at them. Maki glowers and gingerly flaps a hand at the dog. “Shoo. Get away! You’ve had your fun.” 

“Don’t be mean, Maki-chan!”

Exasperated, Maki stomps her foot again and makes an annoyed noise when the dog whines and bumps its head against Rin’s shoulder. “I thought you were a cat person, anyway. And don’t you think it’s getting too friendly with you? It might try to follow us home!” 

“How could anyone say no to a face like this?” Rin looks up at Maki, holding the dog in a loose hug. “Wait a minute… Maki-chan, are you jealous? Of Rin or the dog?”

That’s a good question. “What— _neither!”_

“Nyaha! I’ll name him Rin-kun!” 

Despite the subsequent fit Maki throws and her endless complaints, the dog, newly christened as Rin-kun, manages to tag along all the way back to their apartment. 


	5. cat plush

Rin wakes up in the middle of the night with a startle; something feels _wrong_. She stares up at the ceiling, listening to Maki’s breathing beside her for a while, and finally realizes what it is.

“Maki-chan…!” She whispers, carefully sitting up to avoid shifting the bed. “Maki-chan, did you take Mr. Kitty from me again?!”

Yes, she did. Maki’s fast asleep with the cat plush tightly wrapped in a hug close to her chest, and Rin softly whines and tries to tug the toy away from her.

No such luck, of course. Maki grumbles in her sleep and turns over away from Rin.

“Maki-chan, that’s mine…!”

Maki doesn’t stir. Mr. Kitty is hopelessly trapped in her iron grip, and Rin feels strange and empty without her cat toy close to her. She settles back down with a sigh and scoots close to Maki, pressing her face against the back of the other girl’s neck. Ah, her hair tickles.

“Get off…” Maki half-heartedly kicks backwards but Rin stubbornly clings tight.

“You’re so mean, nya.” Rin pouts, even though she knows Maki won’t see it. It’s not like she’d relent even if she was awake, anyway, so Rin might as well make the most of it. She cuddles in closer and wraps her arms around Maki.

Maybe she’ll buy Maki her own cat plush so she’ll stop taking Rin’s, though.


	6. morning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original prompt: _"Have I entered an alternate universe or did you really just crack a smile for me?”_

Maki is not a morning person by any means, even if her internal clock never fails to wake her while the sun’s barely even out. She stays still for a moment, debating if trying to go back to sleep would be worth it, but then Rin shifts against her and Maki opens her eyes in an automatic response.

No, she’s not a morning person by any means, but all her waking annoyances are forgotten when Rin shifts again, nuzzling against Maki’s shoulder. That’s unfair.

“Hey…” Maki puts a hand on her shoulder, but decides against shaking her awake. 

A sleeping Rin is exponentially less obnoxious than an awake Rin. Not that Maki would ever favor one over the other, even if she’d claim the latter to be far worse. It’s… cute. She’s always cute, even if she still denies it now and then. 

One of Rin’s legs twitches under the covers; maybe she’s dreaming of running or chasing something, like a dog. Maki carefully brushes a strand of hair from Rin’s face, quietly giggling at the thought. 

“… Did I wake up in an alternate universe, or did you really just crack a smile?” Rin suddenly whispers. She hadn’t even opened her eyes, jeez. 

“Shut up. You’re just dreaming,” Maki whispers back, still smiling in spite of herself. 

“Hmmmm… nope.” Rin grins, eyes still closed and pushing herself closer against Maki. “You were watching Rin sleeping, weren’t you? My Maki-chan senses never lie, you know.”

“’Maki-chan senses’? Don’t be weird, Rin.” It’s far too easy to feign annoyance but it’s not easy to hide her own dumb grin. Maki quickly shoves Rin’s face against a pillow, ignoring her muffled protests, and rolls over on top to keep her pinned down. 

“Go back to sleep.”

“Mmmh _ghh_ —”


	7. rooftop

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original prompt: _"Wanna bet?"_

“Rin,” Maki slowly says. “How did you get up there?”

“I-I don’t know! Help meeeee—”

Maki feels like she shouldn’t be surprised that Rin had managed to get herself stuck on the roof of the grand Nishikino manor, even though there aren’t even any ledges on any windows for her to climb from, nor any trees tall or close enough. Sometimes Rin just does… Rin things, and it’s easier not to question them.

“Maki-chan, what’re you doing?!” Rin scrambles on the tiles, spreading herself flat on her belly like a starfish to stop herself from sliding off. Maki is backing up to get a better angle for pictures, holding up her phone.

“I’m posting these online. It’s funny.” 

“Noooo!!”

“By the way, you should get down before Papa comes back. He might get mad if he sees a weirdo on top of our house.”

“That’s why you should help me!!” 

She raises a brow. “Wanna bet? You’re not a cat stuck in a tree, Rin. You can get down yourself.”

Rin slowly inches along the roof like a strange cat-like slug until she’s gripping the edge. Man, since when was Maki’s house even this tall? “At least get me a ladder, nya!”

“No, you can stay up there a little longer. It’s cute when you’re begging for help like that.” With a careless wave of her hand, Maki heads up the walkway and to the front door. “See you in a couple hours, Rin.”

“Maki-chaaaaaaan!!” 


	8. daydreaming

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original prompt: _"I’ve seen the way you look at me when you think I don’t notice.”_

It’s hard not to daydream when the summer heat slams down and the cicadas buzz a very noisy lullaby. Maki lets her eyes wander around the table, from Eli to Hanayo to Umi to… Rin. 

Rin, looking about as energized as a melting dog, a small bead of sweat rolling down her jaw… Maki locks onto that bit of sweat, softly inhaling when Rin lazily brushes it off her neck with the back of her hand.

And Rin’s suddenly staring back and grinning, but Maki’s too busy ogling that sliver of exposed skin peeking from behind Rin’s undone collar to notice. 

“Maki-chan?”

All heads turn to Maki but she’s still lost in some sort of fantasy, if the faraway look in her eyes says anything. Rin has some pretty nice arms, now that she _really_ looks at them. Hm. 

“Maaaaki-chan,” Rin repeats. Honoka loudly coughs, but Maki’s still oblivious.

“Oi!” Nico kicks Maki underneath the table. That does the trick; she jerks upright in her seat and blinks, startled, then scowls at Nico. “You’re staring at Rin again, perv.”

Again? “Wh-what? Don’t make weird assumptions, jeez! I wasn’t staring at anything—”

“ _Maki-chan_ ,” Rin laces her fingers together, batting her eyelashes in an obviously exaggerated manner. “I’ve seen the way you look at Rin when you think she doesn’t notice.” 

“Nnnnoo?” Maki ungracefully stumbles over her words. “You’re just imagining things? Be quiet Rin, you’re being weird. I don’t stare? What’re you talking about?” She helplessly glances around at the others, trying to play it off with a red-faced smirk.

They all turn to each other, as if silently discussing something, then turn back to Maki. Eli is the one to declare their unanimous verdict. Damn you, Eli. “We all notice, sorry. You stare at Rin a _lot_. Even when she’s looking right back at you.”

Maki slowly slips lower in her seat as if she’s debating hiding under the table. Then she realizes she’s staring at Rin _again_ , in spite of herself and in spite of Rin’s stupidly sunny smile making her feel like the stupid one.

Well, maybe they do have a point. 


	9. eating out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original prompt: _“Hey! I was gonna eat that!”_
> 
> **[ heavily implied NSFW ]**

Turns out that Rin is _very_ enthusiastic about using her mouth, maybe beyond what Maki would consider normal. She should’ve expected Rin’s energy levels to rise beyond her expectations as the years went by, but Maki was foolish enough to hope that Rin would mellow out by the time they entered university.

Sadly, it wasn’t the case. 

“Ow-! You bit me again!” Maki, face burning red, reaches down to lightly smack Rin on the head. Great, there’s yet another bite mark on her leg. Looks like she’ll have to wear jeans tomorrow.

“And you hit me again!” Rin growls. But then she’s back to eagerly kissing and nibbling her way along Maki’s thighs, gripping her hips in place. Then another bite.

Another smack.

Another yelp.

It’s a miracle the mood lasted this long. Maybe Maki’s into that sort of thing, not like she’d ever admit it out loud, but god _damnit_ , she has limits too. Rin’s practically chewing up her legs in her zeal and Maki misses wearing skirts and shorts. 

She leans back against the pillows and grips a fistful of Rin’s hair, taking deep breaths to steady herself. Stupid Rin. Idiot Rin. Maki’s eyelids flutter. Stupid… idiot’s weirdly great at what she does… when she’s not biting and clawing like a damn animal. 

 _Chomp_. Maki’s eyes snap open and she shoves Rin away, immediately closing her legs. 

“Hey! I was gonna eat that!” Rin protests, whining and trying to crawl over Maki. 

“Don’t say it like I’m food, you-!” She kicks at Rin again for good measure, but it doesn’t seem to deter her girlfriend. “Why do you keep biting me, anyway! It hurts!” 

“Because you taste good? _Duh_ , Maki-chan!” 

Nah, hell no, she’s not dealing with this nonsense tonight. With one final kick, Maki successfully shoves Rin off the bed, listening for that satisfying thump and yelp combo when she hits the floor. 

But just to make sure she’s fine, Maki peers over the edge. “I’m buying you a muzzle for you, Rin. No arguments.”

“N-nyaaa, Maki-chan’s Do-S side finally emerges—!” 

And then Maki steps on Rin’s face. 


	10. unrequited

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original prompt: _"I just want angsty Maki kissing Rin cause Maki's hella jealous. Gdi I'm trash"_

The news hits Maki like a sack of bricks but she manages to put on a pleasant smile. Of course, Honoka is the first to offer an overenthusiastic congratulations, and then Eli has to go and ask what her name is.

Maki doesn’t listen. She doesn’t want to hear the name of the woman Rin is engaged to so she keeps that smile on her face and puts a friendly hand on Rin’s shoulder, grabbing her attention just for a second.

Since when did Rin outgrow those childish cat smiles, anyway?

“She’s really lucky,” Maki offers. Rin fails to notice the shallow plastic of Maki’s smile and beams back at her, pulling her into a hug as the others continue to chatter with congrats and questions.

Only an hour later, once the party begins to die down into a haze of cheerful drunkenness, Maki pulls Rin around the corner to a hall when no one is looking. She presses a hand over Rin’s mouth to stifle her before replacing her hand with her mouth, pinning the other woman’s wrists to the wall by her head.

“Maki-chan—“ Rin manages a gasp, pitifully trying to pry herself free.

“—I’m sorry,” she can only blurt out, still trying to find some semblance of their faded high school romance. Rin stops resisting altogether but she makes no effort to reciprocate any of Maki’s desperate kisses; she might as well be kissing the wall.

Whose fault was it? Why did they ever break up? 

When did Rin decide to grow up without her?

Finally, Rin manages to push Maki off, firmly gripping her shoulders. She’s so tall now. Maki only sniffles and looks at the floor, and she nearly flinches when she feels fingers brushing her hair back.

“No. _I’m_ sorry, Maki-chan.”

When she looks up, she’s alone in the hall. Rin had already returned to the party as if nothing had happened.


	11. tunnel of love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original prompt: _"rinmaki amusement park au. rin is appalled about how mackey won't be scared at all of the scary rides, always coming up with a logic explanation and keeps dragging her until she finds something that can make her react."_

Vertical Bone-Crusher? A shrug and a yawn.

The Rage Typhoon? Maki doesn’t even blink.

At least the infamous Serpent of Death could get a good reaction, right? Wrong. Rin ends up vomiting once the riders stagger off, but Maki only _tsk_ s and rubs Rin’s back as she empties the contents of her stomach into the nearest trash can.

“Y-You weren’t even screaming, were you…?!” Rin gasps in disbelief once she’s able to stand upright again. Maki holds her steady and leads her to a bench to sit down.

“It wasn’t that bad,” she says too nonchalantly when everyone around them had seen their lives flashing before their eyes. How terrible. Maki’s already launching into an unnecessary lecture about vertigo or something as Rin’s stomach lurches at mere mentions of the ride.

“Maki-chan, I never knew you were this brave…” Rin groans with both admiration and exasperation, leaning heavily against the other girl. Since she had just been purging all her innards, Maki allows it this time and gently rubs her back.

“Being _brave_ isn’t the point of it.” Still, Maki’s cheeks turn a bit pink. “I guess I just don’t get motion sickness that easily.”

“And you’re not afraid of heights, nya!”

“Th-that too, maybe.”

The world is still lurching like a ship in stormy weather but Rin manages to sit back, staring straight at Maki (and trying to fight off those lingering waves of nausea). Of everyone they’re friends with, she’d assumed Maki would be one of the weakest to scary rides. Honestly, Rin had also been looking forward to seeing Maki scared. She’d scream at the top of her lungs on the ride, desperately grabbing for Rin’s hand beside her…

Not like this. Ugh. It’s almost embarrassing. But she’s reignited with a new burning determination and she suddenly jumps up to her feet, pulling Maki up with her.

“Hey, Rin, take it easy-!”

“We’ll find something that Maki-chan’s scared of! No matter what!”

“Why is that even so important to you?! Calm down, Rin!”

Then it strikes her like lightning— _she knows the answer, she knows what she must do_. Her mouth slowly splits into a grin; not her usual cheerful and dopey grin, but the kind that she typically gets whenever she’s plotting something stupid with Nico and Honoka. Maki can read the signs all too well and she tries to pull her hand away from Rin with no success, terror finally creeping upon her.

“Next ride: The Tunnel of Love! Let’s go, nya!!”

“N-nooooo!! _Riiiiin!”_


	12. furry

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original prompt: _"holy shit my gf maki turned to a cat rinmaki au"_

Waking up to find a fluffy red cat in bed beside her where her girlfriend had been the previous night is enough of a cause for alarm, but Rin is no good at processing things right when she wakes up.

So she just lies there for a while, mindlessly stroking the cat’s fur with bleary, sleepy blinks before a violent sneeze completely breaks the odd but quiet peace of the morning.

The cat scrambles away on the bed, even more startled than Rin, and the two stare at each other.

And stare.

And stare.

And then Maki is suddenly _there_ in a quiet little smoky poof as if the cat had never existed, wide awake and clearly trying too hard to pretend like everything is normal.

“Uh… good morning, Rin.”

“Maki-chan? What happened to the kitty?” Rin yawns, apparently not even concerned that her girlfriend had just been a cat for a moment.

“What kitty? I don’t remember a cat. You’re being weird, Rin. There was no cat.”

“Maaaki-chaaaan, you suck at lying…” She drapes an arm around Maki, pulling her close and stopping her from any escape. “You were definitely a kitty just now!”

“L-let go!”

“You were, nyaaa!”

Well… the topic was bound to come up eventually someday, though Maki would’ve preferred to do it on her own terms. She wriggles uselessly in Rin’s one-armed hug and groans, lightly kicking whatever she can kick beneath the sheets just because. “Rin… I’m a shapeshifter. I’m not the best at maintaining complete control over my ability whenever I’m asleep, and I can only seem to turn into a cat so far…”

“Wait. Does that mean I’m dating a furry?”

Maki kicks again. “Are you even awake enough for this?!”

“Nyaaa, looks like the cat’s out of the bag…!”

Rin limps around for the rest of the day, legs dotted with bruises.


	13. height

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original request: _"could you write some rinmaki domestic fluff? If you could include taller rin that'd be awesome"_

One day, Maki realizes the full extent of the height difference that had gradually accumulated over the years when she finds she can’t reach a book Rin had placed on the highest shelf. 

It’s a rather depressing realization, but she’s more annoyed than anything else. Rin notices Maki straining on the toes of her feet, arm completely tense and fingers barely brushing against the spine of that coveted book. She takes the opportunity to sneak behind Maki and snatch the book from the shelf. 

“ _Thanks_ ,” Maki sputters through gritted teeth. She thrusts a hand forward, expecting Rin to hand the book over, but no such thing happens. 

“Hmmm, maybe we should get a stool for Maki-chan to use?” Slowly, with the most cheerful shit-eating grin, Rin holds the book high over her head. 

Maki completely falls for the bait and tries to grab at it, but it’s out of her reach. 

“Or maybe _you_ should stop leaving things on the highest shelves!” 

“Rin still has a stool she used when she was a kid! I wouldn’t mind passing it on to Maki-cha _oow!”_

Maki had stomped hard on Rin’s foot. She yanks the book from Rin’s hand once she lowers her arm, and promptly chops her on the head with it. Rin yelps again and cowers, rubbing the spot where she had been struck. 

“There, now we’re at the same height,” Maki pushes Rin’s head down and pinches her cheek, unable to hold back an affectionate smirk despite her irritation. 

“M-Maki-chan! It hurts, nya! Rin can’t help being taller than you!” 

“Keep that up and I’ll make you walk on your knees for the rest of the day.”

“Why?!” 

Despite Rin’s best efforts to behave, she still winds up walking on her knees anyway. Or maybe Maki just used it as an excuse to see Rin kneeling. 


	14. going home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original prompt: "War's End" kiss
> 
> [ Fire Emblem AU ]

“So, what’s Maki gonna do now?” Rin sidles up beside the other woman, toothy grin bared and hands folded behind her back. The atmosphere of the celebratory party is still lingering even hours after everyone is either passed out or on the verge of passing out. Maki squints out at the horizon and watches her breath condense in the cold morning air. 

“I’m going home. My parents are still waiting for me, after all. I’ve done my part for everyone.” 

“Hmmm? You’re not gonna stick around longer?” Rin sways on the heels of her feet, head tilted. “Everyone’s gonna miss you!” 

“It’s not like I’m the only one. Even for those without family or friends waiting for them… with Grima dead and Plegia surrendered, we don’t need to fight anymore,” Maki says matter-of-factly. “So there’s no need to stay.”

“Oh. Right.” Rin’s ears seem to droop. It doesn’t escape Maki’s notice, and she knows she’ll have to ask eventually.

“… What about you, Rin? Don’t you have someplace to go?”

“Maybe!” Rin’s like a child with those shiny eyes and small stature, but there’s something older in the way her jaw is set. It slightly uneases Maki and she’s not sure why. “Rin’s been wandering around a lot before I found you guys. Manakete like me don’t really have a home, y’know? And it’s rare for us to find others of our kind…”

Rin exhales and it almost looks like dragonbreath in the dim light. “I had a lot of fun even while we were fighting for our lives. Isn’t that weird? But now that there’s no reason left to fight… hm, I dunno! I’ve still got lots of time to think it over, so it should be fine.” 

Maki thinks back to those weeks of marching and fighting, training and waiting, weathering storms as the mud stuck to their boots. She had often found Rin covering her flank on the battlefield even when she told the dragon girl to leave her be. As much as Maki is reluctant to admit, Rin had saved her life on several occasions even if she didn’t realize it herself. 

One night, when a horde of Risen stormed their camp, Maki remembers in vivid detail how Rin raised her head in the midst of battle and howled fire up at the stars. 

It was one of the most beautiful things she had ever seen. 

“Maki? Maaaaki?” Rin waves a hand in front of her face and she starts. 

“Wh-what? I— come with me,” Maki blurts out, gripping the hem of her shirt. “Rin, come home with me.”

“… Nya?” 

“I mean… you don’t have anything better to do, isn’t that right? In that case, I wouldn’t mind showing you around my hometown.”

She can see those fire-lit stars again in Rin’s eyes, at this moment. 

“Really? Is that really okay?! I can go with you?!” 

“The war is over. You should come home too, Rin.”

The sun is finally reaching past the horizon, illuminating two silhouettes meeting each other in joy and relief. Rin purrs against Maki’s mouth, running her hands over the knotted muscles on her back, and Maki realizes this just might be the dawn she had been fighting for all this time. 


	15. execution

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original prompt: _"A combination of 7 9 11 for rinmaki. Rin is a soldier. Thanks!"_
> 
> (7. “I’ve missed you” kiss)  
> (9. “War’s End” kiss)  
> (11. “I almost lost you” kiss)

Dust still takes its time settling over ruined land. The sky won’t be blue for a long, long time, but it wouldn’t matter either way since it isn’t safe to come up to the surface until the scattered vampires and ghouls are completely wiped out.

Maki stopped clinging onto the silly idea of hope months ago when Rin vanished from the frontlines and her body was never found. But today, like a bird with broken wings taking flight, she can feel weight lifting off her shoulders when she spots a filthy but familiar shade of ginger in the small cluster of survivors being escorted into the underground base.

Their eyes lock from that great distance. Maki doesn’t think twice before sprinting and shoving through people to grab Rin’s shoulders and confirm it’s her, _it’s really her_ , tears threatening to spill over. 

“You _idiot_ —” Maki sobs, cupping her face and pressing her forehead against Rin’s, but when she inhales she only smells rust and rot. That’s not right. Maki opens her eyes. 

Rin’s irises are stained red and she’s too pale. Horror creeps into Maki’s relief when she realizes what had enabled Rin to survive out there all this time, while the world was at war. 

“… Sorry, Maki-chan. I messed up.” Rin’s mouth trembles. She has fangs. Maki knows what it means now and what’s coming next; she weeps, ignoring the yells and shoving around them, and frantically kisses Rin like it’s their last.  

These aren’t survivors who will be given food and medical care, these are captured vampires headed for execution. 


	16. predatorial

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original prompt: _"If you're still taking prompts, can you do rinmaki n 14? (maybe with rin biting??)_
> 
> (14. Kiss on the neck)

Rin Hoshizora, biggest dork in the whole world and typically about as dignified as a cat wearing socks for the first time, is unexpectedly taking huge leaps out of her territory. Maki isn’t sure if she should be impressed or afraid; whatever the appropriate response should be, she feels a shiver making its way down her spine as Rin spreads her fingers across her shoulder blades. 

“Can you lean over for me, Maki-chan?” Rin murmurs into her ear. Maki shivers again and bites her bottom lip, obligingly lowering herself further over the table she’s currently bracing herself against. 

The hands that had been mapping random spots over her naked back now slide higher to brush aside hair and expose Maki’s neck, before pressing down on the table on both sides. Rin now effectively has Maki caged beneath her taller frame. 

Rin Hoshizora isn’t allowed to be _predatorial_. It’s so contradictory and baffling, yet Maki lets out a small, small whine when hot breath touches the back of her neck. 

Yes, the most accurate comparison would be that of a large predator cat toying with its prey. 

“H-hey…” Maki’s groan trails off into a softer sound. Rin is gently nibbling Maki’s neck with small kisses peppered here and there. “Rin, _don’t_ leave any marks.” 

“Heeeh, why not?” She grins, all teeth, and bites Maki just a little harder, pulling out a sharp gasp from the girl beneath her. 

 _Why not?_ Maki has to wonder that herself, as she struggles to keep her arms straight. 


	17. cousins

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original prompt(s): rinmaki, jealous kiss, rin as the jealous one 
> 
> (they're older in this one)

_His hair looks fake_ , Rin decides. She doesn’t hear whatever Kotori’s saying, too busy looking past her at Maki and some young man talking to each other in a manner too friendly and familiar for Rin’s liking. 

Like, it’s not a weird thing to talk to people at a party (and especially at a fancy dinner party like this, something Rin would’ve never gone to if Maki hadn’t invited her friends) but… he’s touching her shoulder now, smiling wide. Rin doesn’t recognize the uneasy feeling fluttering in her stomach. 

“Rin-chan?” Kotori waves a hand in front of her face, and she blinks. “Are you alright?”

“Uh huh. Uh. Hang on a sec,” Rin offers an apologetic but brief glance to Kotori and brushes past her, making her way past more people and over to Maki _who’s laughing at whatever he’s saying, why is she laughing, why is he still touching her shoulder_. 

She doesn’t quite remember what happens next, probably because she had a bit too much champagne beforehand, but Rin _does_ remember loudly saying something sarcastic to the bewildered young man and pressing a clumsy kiss against Maki’s lips as a few other people watches on. Just to drive in the point that they’re girlfriends, Rin attempts to deepen the kiss before Maki steps on her foot.

Then the young man has the balls to laugh. First he decides to get all chummy with Maki, and now this?

“Are you out of your mind?!” Maki shakes Rin by the shoulders. Somehow they had ended up outside on the balcony and Maki’s face is red, matching both her hair and dress.

“He _laughed_ at me,” Rin sullenly says, pouting. “And I didn’t like the way he was touching your shoulder. What was his angle, exactly?”

“He’s my cousin, you idiot!” 

“… Oh! That’s a relief!” 

Maki steps on Rin’s foot for the second time that evening.


	18. tired

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> part of the kiss requests series

Paper flutters, the sound loud enough to interrupt the silence of the room. One of Maki’s eyebrows raises. She looks over her book and stares long and hard at Rin, who had allowed some of the pages of the homework in front of her to slide off the table and to the floor. 

Her head nods once, twice, a telltale sign that she’s about to pass out. Maki considers giving her a good chop to jolt her back into focus. 

… But it’s been a long day for both of them, and she knows that Rin really had been trying her best to concentrate. So she quietly slides out of her seat and moves behind Rin, chin hovering over her shoulder. Rin still hasn’t noticed anything. 

“Wake up,” Maki half-whispers, half-murmurs, brushing her lips across Rin’s ear. Other than a light shiver, Rin doesn’t respond. In fact, she only hunches over even more until her forehead is pressing against the table, arms dangling by her sides. It’s not a very attractive position. 

“Come on, you’re so hopeless…” she softly says with a fond smile, leaning down to properly kiss Rin on the back of her ear. Rin sighs in her sleep as Maki gathers the scattered homework pages from the floor. 


	19. home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> part of the kiss series requests

“I’m—“

“— _Maki-chan!!_ You’re home!! _”_

“Rin-! Get off, I can’t breathe—“

“Hehe, did Rin steal your breath away?”

As punishment for coming up with such a horrible line, Maki wriggles her arms free and pinches Rin’s cheeks. Still, as annoyed as she is for being tackled with a powerful hug before she could even remove her shoes, Rin’s enthusiastic greeting is a sweet end to a long business trip.

But she still pulls Rin’s cheeks, just because.

“A-ahh, Maki-chan, you’re hurting my face…!”

“Shall I pinch harder, then?”

“That doesn’t make any sense!!”

Her fingers adjust and Maki roughly cups Rin’s face with her palms, their bodies tightly pressed against one another. Rin’s still wearing that damn goofy smile despite complaining about the rough pinching and Maki laughs, leaning forward until their foreheads bump.

“If I wanted a greeting like that, I could’ve just bought a dog instead of having you move in.”

“Are you saying I’m a dog?! That can’t be right! Y’know, if you’re thinking of Rin like that, I could start meowing again like I used to in high school. I’m no dog!”  

“No, you’re not a dog. Dogs are smarter.”

Whatever protest was on the tip of Rin’s tongue is silenced with an abrupt kiss. Her eyebrows shoot up in surprise but she returns it just before it ends as quickly as it started. What a tease.

It’s dumb, but. “I missed you too, alright?”

No, maybe it’s not so dumb. “I thought about you every single day, while you were gone!”

“… Me too, Rin. Me too.”

This time Maki lets their kiss draw out longer than necessary, slowly relishing in the smell and taste and warmth of Rin. It’s good to be home.


	20. drunk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> part of the kiss requests series.
> 
> they're both adults here. always drink responsibly and legally!!!!

“M-Maki-chan, could you stop moving? Please? It’s kinda hard when—“

Her sentence finishes off with an unintentional yelp as Maki tumbles over her own feet, dragging Rin down to the ground along with her.

There’s a thump, a groan, and drawled giggling coming from Maki, who had lost all composure and dignity once she passed the point of _tipsy_ and officially became  _drunk_. Of course, Rin blames herself for not keeping a closer eye on her and stopping her from taking more wine, but it’s too late for that.

Maki might punch her once she’s at the hangover stage tomorrow. Who knows?

“Reeee _eeeeen_ ,” Maki’s breath is heavy with the sour smell of wine, and she squirms on top of the other woman. “Have you been drink— dreenk— dranking…?”

“No, Maki-chan, _you_ were drinking!” Rin helplessly tries to push Maki off of her, turning her head away and wrinkling her nose when Maki breathes right in her face.

Then suddenly she feels an unsteady hand loosely gripping her hair, and the smell of wine is now the taste of wine, and Maki is hungrily licking and sucking at Rin’s lips.

The thought of Maki being an affectionate drunk tickles Rin for some reason. She sputters but gives up on pushing at Maki’s shoulders, instead humoring her and kissing back. It’s kinda gross and it tastes bad, and Maki seems more into licking Rin’s mouth than actually doing anything that resembles kissing, but affection is still affection and Rin is weak to all of it.

She’s weak to Maki, too, but that’s a given.

Maki spends the entirety of the next day sitting in a cocoon of blankets and glaring at everything with a resting bitch face. At least she doesn’t punch Rin.


	21. burglary

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original request: thief au feat rinmaki

Maki Nishikino, sole heir to the Nishikino fortune and aspiring doctor-in-training, always figured this day would come when she wakes up to find a silhouette crouched on the windowsill with a knife in their hand and Death right behind them.

She doesn’t scream. Either she’s half-asleep or she’s too shocked, but Maki doesn’t make a sound when the figure nimbly lands on plush carpet. A small squeak does escape her throat when he (she? they have a small, slender figure, more like a woman’s than a man’s) turns her way, slowly approaching her bed. 

She had had a nagging feeling that she’d forgotten to lock the windows before turning in for the night. Well, too late to fix that mistake. 

“If— if you’re looking to take my valuables, I won’t hand them over,” Maki bravely speaks out, stopping the woman in her tracks. At the same time she pulls the covers up to her chin like a child hiding from the monsters in her closet. 

“Aww, really?” the intruder still doesn’t put the knife away, though she scratches the back of her head in a befuddled gesture and leaves a couple meters between her and Maki’s bed. “See, I kinda figured since you have so much money, you could at least spare a little…”

Maki narrows her eyes, squinting in the dark. Maybe it’s just a bad dream, then. She gathers up her scattered bravado and takes a deep, shuddering breath to calm her racing heart. “… Get out of my house.”

“Just a piece of silver?”

“Get out!”

The woman just stands there, staring and holding that damn knife, and removes her hat as if she’s presenting herself before royalty. Maki rubs her eyes and wonders when she’ll wake up.

“Umm. My name’s Rin!”

“I don’t care. Get out of my house.”

“I can’t find a job, and I’ve got bills to pay…”

“I’m calling the cops.”

“H-hey, I have a knife, you know! Stay where you are, and, uh, gimme all your money!” But Rin’s hands are trembling as she holds out the knife, and Maki realizes this person had probably never robbed someone before, much less stabbed anyone. She pulls her covers back and swings her legs over the edge of the bed, glaring. 

“There are better ways to make money than resorting to criminal activity.”

Rin hangs her head and lowers the knife. “I didn’t know what else to do.”

Goddamnit, now she’s actually starting to feel bad for this poor fool. Maki’s logical side screams at her that it’s just an act to make her lower her guard, while her sentimental side aches for Rin. Which is stupid, because this is some dangerous(?) weirdo who had climbed up to her second-story window and crawled into her bedroom. Where’s the logic in pitying her, really?

So she stands up, bravely strides over, and slaps Rin across the face. 

The knife falls to the carpet with a muffled sort of sound. 

“O-ow! What was that for?!”

“Why do you think?! You just threatened me with a knife and tried to rob me!” 

“Not _yet_. Rin didn’t try to rob you _yet_.”

Maki slaps her again. Rin yelps like a struck dog and cowers sheepishly. 

“I’ll keep slapping you if you don’t apologize!” 

“Nooo! No, stop hitting me! I’m sorryyyyy—!” 

Ugh, her heart’s still pounding from her initial fear but now Maki’s just pissed off. She snatches up the knife and Rin flinches, still cowering. How on earth did someone like this ever figure they could pass off as a thief? She scowls and sighs, tapping the blade with her nails. 

“Rin, was it? Give me your address.”

“Um.”

“Hurry up, come on. I want to go back to sleep,” Maki impatiently holds out a hand. Rin obligingly digs out a crumpled handkerchief from her pocket and takes a pen left out on the dresser, pointed out by Maki, and scrawls on it. “I’ll come find you tomorrow. Maybe. I might be able to help you with your situation.”

Rin’s eyes light up, which Maki can see even in the darkness of the room, and tenderly rubs the spot on her face where Maki had slapped her. “Really…? You’d really do that for Rin?!”

“Well, yes. It’s not like the wealthy don’t have feelings, you know,” Maki sets the knife down (out of Rin’s reach) and folds her arms. _And you’re kinda cute, though that might just be the bad lighting_ , she neglects to add. 

“Thank you! Thank you thank you—!” Rin leaps at Maki and Maki is unable to hold back a small shriek, but Rin’s just grabbing her in an overly affectionate hug. “Ahhh, you’re so nice! Even if you slapped me too hard!” 

“Wh-whatever, don’t mention it, _will you get out of my house now?!”_


	22. sad cat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original request: "Make maki work at the pet shop and rin comes in to pet the cats every once in a while because she is sad. Maki notices this and pets Rin as well. In the end it's just a giant hug with the cats and maki"

“Hey, you.”

Rin looks up from the floor, lap full of wriggling kittens. It’s the girl she usually sees organizing inventory or feeding the rabbits; her glare (it’s a glare, right?) makes Rin slightly uneasy and she wonders if she did something wrong.

“… Me?”

“I’m not talking to the cats, am I?” She doesn’t mean to sound so confrontational, but. Well. Maki was never all that great with those sorts of things. She’s good with animals, but people are a different story. “You’ve been coming here every day for two weeks straight. Don’t think nobody working here’s noticed.”

“I like the cats,” Rin mumbles, allowing a kitten to claw at her faded yellow hoodie. “They’re fun to play with, and I can’t keep any of my own.”

She’s half expecting to be kicked out of the store right on the spot but to her surprise, the employee crouches beside her with her mouth set in a hard line but her eyes somewhat soft. Like she’s trying to look soft.

 _Maki_ , her nametag says. Rin wonders why she never noticed the nametag before, even though she’d passed by her in the store dozens of times.

“Here.” Then of all things, Maki awkwardly places a hand on Rin’s head and lightly rubs her hair. Rin’s too stunned to duck away or say something, so Maki goes still with mortification when she notices the lack of reaction.

“… If you don’t mind the company. I, uh, I assumed you were under a lot of stress from something, from the look on your face, and I…”

Finally, she retracts her hand, looking away with red tinging her ears. A couple kittens are clambering up her legs and Maki gives in, carefully sitting down next to Rin. She’s still looking in the other direction, the hand that had been on Rin’s head curled in a half-fist by her side.

Well, there are probably stranger ways to meet people. For the first time in days, Rin allows herself to smile.

“Hey, you can call me Rin.”

“… Rin. You should at least buy _something_ if you’re going to visit the store this often, you know.”

This time Rin laughs, some sort of weight easing up on her shoulders. Maki can’t hold back a smile as well; this girl looks downright adorable when she’s covered in squeaking kittens and grinning like that. Several kittens are climbing up her clothes as well, delighted that another playmate has joined them.

A ten minute break doesn’t sound so bad.


	23. rinderella

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a cinderella au ??!

Once upon a time there was a nyan named Rin Hoshizora, who lived a rather modest but overall mediocre life with her stepmom Nicobassan and two stepsisters, Hanayonee-chan and Kotonee-sama. They were pretty chill (except for Nicobassan who had a fiery temper) but most of the housework was still left to Rin for whatever reason, probably out of obligation for the story. Unfortunately, Rin had a godawful attention span and the laundry often ended up in mud puddles outside for some reason.

They also sometimes called her Rinderella, just because it sounded neat and stuff.

Anyway, one day, the royal family announced a royal ball that would be open to all, even the peasants from the lower class. Rin’s stepfamily immediately decided to attend but they told Rin that she had to stay home.

“But why can’t I go to the ball too?!” Rin cried out.

“Because you left the laundry out in the rain again, you moron!” Nicobassan yelled.

Kotonee-sama and Hanayonee-chan felt bad for little Rinderella but there was nothing they could do to convince Nicobassan to change her mind. So while the three of them dressed up in pretty dresses and left for the ball, Rin was left sitting on the porch in her dirty and ragged peasant clothes, gazing out into the night.

“Hmm, I sure wish I could go out to the party…”

“Did someone say _party?!_ ”

Suddenly, in a brilliant flash of light, there was a strange woman with gossamer wings standing before Rin. She winked and did a little twirl, tossing her long braid over her shoulder.

“Nya?!” Rin almost fell out of her chair in shock. “Who’re you?!”

“I’m Nozomi, your fairy gaymother!”

“… My what?”

“Your fairy gaymother! Ah, you also have a fairy gayfather, but Elicchi couldn’t make it tonight so it’s just me. Lucky you, though~!”

“Ummm.”

“Now, now, there’s no need to be so confused,” Nozomi sauntered closer and winked again, pulling a thin wand from her cleavage (and Rin briefly wondered what other mystical items Nozomi was hiding in there). She waved the wand, sending a little shower of sparkles falling down on Rin’s lap. “I’m here to grant all your desires, my dear!”

“Really?! All of them?!” Rin stood up, her eyes wide. She clasped her hands in front of her and stared at her fairy gaymother in awe and wonder, not even questioning the sanity of the situation in general. “Can you help me get to the royal ball?!”

“Of course, that’s child’s play to a powerful gaymother like me~” Nozomi tapped Rin on the nose with her wand, and there was another burst of light before Rin found herself in the most beautiful white dress she had ever seen.

As Rin spun around in delight, running her hands over the rich fabric, Nozomi turned to a pumpkin in the yard and waved her wand at that. It transformed into a magnificent carriage, with some accompanying horses and a carriage driver that had been mice running around in the dirt just prior.

“Hey, I was gonna make pumpkin pie out of that!!”

“No time for pie, you’re going to be late!” Nozomi quickly ushered Rinderella towards the carriage and helped her in. Just as the carriage begin to roll off down the dirt road, Nozomi suddenly called out—

“Ah, I forgot to mention! Be sure to leave before midnight or else my spell will wear off!”

“What was that?” Rin called back out the window, unable to hear Nozomi over the noise of the wheels and the pounding of hooves on dirt.

“ _I said…!”_

But it was too late; the carriage had turned around a corner and Nozomi fell out of sight. She rubbed her cheek and shrugged. “Mm, oh well. I’m sure Rinderella will be fine.”

Meanwhile, the carriage eventually made its way to the grand castle belonging to the Nishikino royal family, the rulers of the kingdom and its surrounding lands. The ball had already started but it’s always cool to be fashionably late, Rin thought to herself to ease her nerves, and she entered the hall in her beautiful white dress.

A bunch of people paused whatever they were doing to stare at her and Rin waved nervously, suddenly unsure what to do. She could see Hanayonee-chan trailing after severs with their platters of food and Nicobassan trying to pickpocket some nobles, and Kotonee-sama was busy dancing with another girl with ginger hair. Rinderella considered going to join Hanayonee-chan and pocket some food for later when the attention that had just been on her suddenly diverted elsewhere, and a revered hush fell over the entire crowd packed in the castle hall.

It was Prince Maki, heir to the crown and daughter of the King and Queen. She stood at the opposite side of the hall and said some stuff in what was no doubt a stern but grandiose speech, but Rin was so far in the back she couldn’t even hear any of it.

“What? What’d she say? Does anyone know what she’s saying?” Rin whispered, and some people shushed her.

And just like that, the party proceeded as normal and Rinderella could no longer see the Prince; she had probably joined the crowd to mingle or whatever. Rin awkwardly made her way through the crowds, but people seemed to come apart to give her a path, captivated by the mysterious girl’s beauty and cuteness.

They weren’t the only ones captivated by her, though. Just a few meters away, unbeknownst to Rinderella, Prince Maki was staring slack-jawed with her cheeks slowly reddening.

 _“She’s so cute…?!”_ Prince Maki screamed inside her head, her hands trembling against her mouth. She attempted to approach the unknown girl but tripped and fell flat on her face with a thump.

“The Prince has fallen!!” Someone shrieked.

“Shush! I’m alright!” Prince Maki scrambled back up and waved off everyone’s stares with the burn in her face growing. She just about burst into flames (metaphorically, not literally holy shit) when she saw the girl she had just been ogling now ogling her.

They were both ogling each other. It was embarrassing.

Then someone nudged Rinderella forward, and she stumbled closer to the Prince. Everyone continued to do their own thing while giving them a clear circle of space and glancing at the pair. What’s this? Had a mysterious stranger suddenly bewitched the notoriously cold and aloof Prince? Or had the Prince simply fallen in love?

“H-hi,” Prince Maki blurted out, wringing her hands. Rinderella shyly averted her gaze downwards but grinned, and the Prince found herself internally shrieking yet again.

“What a fine castle you live in, your highness!” Rin finally looked up at the Prince and Maki’s heart skipped a beat. She returned the smile, albeit a lot more awkwardly, and coughed into her fist.

“Thank you. Um. Uh. Uhh.”

Rin patiently waited with that stupidly adorable smile and Prince Maki felt like she could weep at such a pure sight. Finally, the royal heir managed to compose herself and steady her thumping heart. She bowed low, and this time it was Rin’s turn to blush deeply and stumble over her thoughts.

“May I have this dance?”

“O-of course, your highness.”

“Please, call me Maki.”

She gently took one of Rin’s hands and led her out to the floor as other ball-goers around them continued to stare. Nicobassan probably would’ve fallen flat from such a shocking sight, but she was still too busy pickpocketing people to notice Rinderella and the Prince slowly dancing in each other’s arms.

Rin’s eyes sparkled with all the stars and happiness and Maki’s lips trembled, worrying about this and that, about if she’d step on one of her feet or if her hand was sweaty or if the arm on her waist was a bit too low. But Rin looked like the happiest girl in the world at that moment and the Prince’s heart melted all at once, and they gazed at each other as they swayed to the soft music drifting through the hall.

They talked, and laughed, and even trod on each other’s toes a couple times, but Prince Maki made no effort to find another dance partner or attend to her other guests for a long while. Rinderella quietly wished that the evening would never end.

But it would have to end eventually, for the clock suddenly struck midnight.

“Oh, for shame,” Prince Maki frowned, looking over her shoulder. “The night’s already passed so quickly. N-not that I mind or anything, of course. We can continue to dance.”

“Ah! I forgot to bring in the laundry again!”

Through a window outside, Nozomi watched on with a puzzled look as the Prince and Rinderella continued to dance with nothing changing. “That’s odd, the spell should have worn off by now…”

“I fixed it for you before Rin entered the castle,” Eli suddenly appeared beside her, looking just a little bit less than disgruntled. “Honestly, Nozomi, can you imagine how disastrous it would have been if the girl suddenly found herself in rags again?”

“Oh, shush. It looks like it’s all working out just fine!”

“Stop putting time limits on your spells!! What’s the point of the time limits?!”

“I love you too, Elicchi~”

And so the ball ended on a happy note just a couple of hours before the sun rose. Prince Maki invited Rinderella to stay in the castle and proposed to her, an offer that Rin happily accepted. But they didn’t get married right away, because they were both really really sleepy so they ended up crashing until the late afternoon.

Nicobassan didn’t get caught and went home with her pockets heavy with shiny stuff, and she shrieked when she found the laundry scattered around the ground but Rin was not there for her to yell at. Later on, she would receive a letter from Rin explaining that she was marrying into the royal family and Nicobassan grudgingly took back her anger, on the promise she could visit the castle whenever she wanted. Kotonee-sama and Hanayonee-chan were both glad for Rin and they found their own love lives elsewhere, so things worked out for them too.

Later on, Maki and Rin had their grand wedding which most of the kingdom attended, and everyone agreed that Rin looked really really cute in that wedding dress, like dang gurl. Her fairy gaymother and gayfather were also in attendance, of course, and Nozomi took credit for the dress’s creation. Eli had to fix the charm so that the dress wouldn’t vanish in the middle of the reception. Thanks Nozomi. 

And they all lived happily ever after. The end.


	24. in the rain

“Wait a minute, Rin—“

They both stop in their tracks right then, Rin half-turned mid-stride and one of Maki’s hands securely wrapped around her wrist. Silence stretches between them for only a few seconds before Maki yanks Rin all the way back to her, and Rin stumbles rather ungracefully into her arms with a sharp intake of breath.

“M-Maki-chan…”

There’s water dripping through their hair and down their faces but neither of them seem to notice. Water falling from the sky just doesn’t seem like a big deal, not in the now, not when Maki utilizes what little height she has over Rin to boldly tilt her chin up and press her lips against the smaller girl’s.

The water is soaking through their clothes now. Rin shivers a bit and Maki only hugs her tighter, slightly moving her jaw and letting her throat vibrate with a low hum when she feels Rin clumsily return the kiss, the embrace reciprocated without any trace of hesitation.

Meanwhile, on the balcony above them, Nico waves the hose she was spraying them with and angrily yells. 

“Stop making out on my lawn, you goddamn idiots!”


	25. french

Rin says something that Maki can only pretend to understand with her limited knowledge of French from short lessons long forgotten from her early childhood years, the words like smooth silk pouring off the tip of Rin’s tongue. She _smiles_ , and damn this idiot, because Maki’s pretty sure blood is rushing to her cheeks.

Not allowed. Rin isn’t allowed to be so damn charming. That’s like violating the laws of nature.

Two years traveling and studying abroad would change a person, Maki supposes.

“Pretty neat, huh?” Rin’s smile widens by a fraction when she notices that blush and the way Maki keeps diverting her gaze elsewhere. The cause for it, however, flies right over her head. “French was way easier to learn than English! Anyway, Maki-chan, you’d love it there, they’ve got loads of art galleries— I still don’t get that stuff, actually, but,”

Her rambling continues but Maki is still only pretending to listen. _Say something in French again you moron_ , she’s tempted to say out loud, but of course she doesn’t. Instead, she quickens her pace to walk a few steps ahead of Rin.

“Hey, wait up!”

Oh, to hell with it all. Maki allows Rin to grab her shoulder and she grabs Rin’s wrist in return, glaring up at her. Rin also isn’t allowed to be taller. The laws of nature will have to be revised, apparently.

“Let’s go back to my place to talk.”

“But I had reservations at that restaurant, and it’s just around the corner…”

“We’ll deal with that later. _Whatever_. Let’s just go.”

“Wait wait wait, Maki-chan, you’re pulling my arm too hard-!”

—

Rin crumples and folds like a tower of cards once it’s made perfectly clear what Maki’s after, as if it wasn’t clear enough already. They make a sort of sloppy, haphazard dance in each other’s arms across glossy hardwood floor with random articles of clothing deposited every other step. The bedroom is too far away and Maki winds up dragging a half-naked Rin with her patience worn down to the consistency of wet rice paper and Rin is stammering something, _not_ in French, attempting to plant more kisses along Maki’s bare shoulders as she stumbles along.

They never make it to the bedroom. Neither of them really mind, and there’s a convenient plush sofa, so.

“Listen to me for a second,” Maki breathes, grasping Rin’s face with both hands. Two years in a foreign country did little to wear down the naivety in Rin’s goofy smile but there’s something else she can barely see and feel, something Maki wants to drag out from behind the Rin she knows and missed for all that time.

“Uhh?” Rin says, articulate as always.

“Talk to me in French,” Maki’s face reddens. God, she feels like a character in a crappy romcom, but she pushes on (and pushes Rin on her back, on the sofa) when she gets a puzzled blink in response. “I want you to talk to me in French. Got it?”

Rin gets it. Probably. She could laugh at Maki’s silly request and ruin the mood but she doesn’t, thankfully. Her grin takes a new angle and she pulls Maki onto her lap, whispering foreign words in her ear that make Maki arch her back and shiver.

—

“Hey, Maki-chan,” Rin pipes up. They somehow finally made it to the bedroom after some time of moving from the sofa to the wall, to a table, to the wall again, and down the hallway, and it was frankly _kind of_ savage on Maki’s part, but Rin can appreciate that enthusiasm. Even if said enthusiasm left bite marks and scratches all over her. She’s glad Maki isn’t holding herself back with all her reservations from those few years ago, at least.

“Mmh?” Maki lazily props herself up on her elbows and bends her neck to rub her face with her hands, sleepy.

“Did you understand any of the things I was saying? While we were….”

Maki looks straight at Rin and wishes she could say yes. Because that’d make it slightly less embarrassing, maybe. “Of course I did!”

“No way!” Rin laughs and rolls over onto her back, nudging Maki’s arm with her head in her usual cat-like ways. “I still know every sign when Maki-chan is lying, you know!”

“I’m not lying, Rin.”

“Yes! Yes you are! You definitely are!” Rin wriggles in even closer, still laughing, and something about the laugh makes Maki pause and consider.

“What are you talking about…”

“Uhhhhh.”

“Rin!” Maki reaches to pinch her face, drawing out little mewls of protest.

“I know Maki-chan is lying because Rin was talking about food the whole time! But you still thought it was hot—!”

“ _Rin!_ ”

She pinches harder. Rin mewls louder.

“I’m telling the truth, I swear! You were going really hard while I was describing the sandwich I had earlier today so that’s how I know you didn’t understand a word Rin was saying! And it wasn’t even a very good sandwich!”

This is too much for Maki’s fragile dignity. She finally lets go of Rin and covers her face with her hands, groaning and silently hoping for a spontaneous earthquake to open up a chasm in the floor and swallow her. Rin cautiously nudges up against her again, and Maki feels an arm drape around her, a gesture she recognizes as one of Rin’s usual attempts at physical comfort.

“Well, you told Rin to speak in French so suddenly, I wasn’t sure what to talk about…”

“I meant dirty talk, Rin! Jeez!”

“Then should I try again?!”

They stare at each other, faces too close and eyes too wide, Maki’s face  heating up. Rin’s face is, too, and they manage to keep a straight expression for about four seconds before they both burst out into laughter, ears and cheeks reddened.

“Not right now,” Maki wipes her eyes with her knuckles, gently pushing Rin away. “You completely ruined the mood.”

“I did?!”

“‘ _It wasn’t even a very good sandwich!’_ ” Maki imitates with a grimace. “Really?”

“They put too much mustard on it…”

“You’re missing the point! I’m getting dressed.” She swings her legs over the edge of the bed, mildly wondering where all her clothes had been scattered. There’s one of her socks by the open door, and she thinks that might be her skirt down the hall.

At least Rin doesn’t try to pull her back, but she’s getting up in her personal space yet again. “Aww, Maki-chan!” 

“We didn’t even have dinner yet, so let’s go out.” Ah, right, they had had reservations, but then Maki…

Another embarrassing moment to add to the vault, then. Maki shivers involuntarily and decides to pick a new outfit from her wardrobe rather than attempting to gather all the articles of clothing left around the apartment. Rin can deal with her own clothes.

“Oh yeah!” Rin bounces to her feet off the other side of the bed and stretches, flashing a toothy grin when she catches Maki watching her in the reflection of a mirror on the wall. “No more detours this time, though?”

Maki quickly averts her stare and huffs. “Of course not.”

“ _Comme tu veux, mon amour._ ”

Rin gets a slipper violently thrown at her face barely a second later, but the look Maki gave her was totally worth it.


	26. movie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original prompt: "Rinmaki watching a movie together. They end up getting a little distracted by each other and miss some of it."

Rin’s hand is _warm_ , is all Maki can think of. Not just her hand, too. It’s her whole arm and her leg and she’s practically radiating heat. Why is she sitting so damn close, anyway?

Oh, right, because it’s Rin.

Something on the TV screen blows up and Rin excitedly grips Maki’s arm. “Maki-chan, did you see that?!”

No, she didn’t actually see it. Maki was too busy thinking about Rin’s weirdly high body temperature to really pay attention to the movie, but she sort of nods nevertheless. “Mmhm.”

“Hey, hey, wouldn’t it be cool if we could be like those people in the movie? Fighting bad guys and driving cool cars and using crazy weapons, nyaa…!”

Maki doesn’t particularly care about action movies like this. Too unpredictable and too noisy (like Rin, but at least Rin is endearing). Still, Rin had been excited about watching this one, so Maki had conceded while they were picking out a movie together.

Seeing her so excited makes it worth it, though, and Maki can’t resist grabbing the opportunity to tease her. It’s payback for all those other times Rin teased _her_ , sure.

“But you know what happens at the end of those movies, don’t you?”

“No spoilers, Maki-chan!”

“That’s not what I’m talking about.” Maki’s fingers trail up Rin’s arm to her shoulder, and she cups the back of her neck. Rin is nervously glancing between the screen and Maki. “Once the bad guys are defeated, and the good guys walk away from the battle…” She leans in closer, fighting back her own embarrassment, and whispers, “They _kiss_.”

“Nooo! That’s the worst part!” Rin falls over away from Maki. “Kiss scenes are so dumb, nya!”

“Oh, really?” Goddamn, being on the other end of the embarrassment spectrum for once is like a high, especially with how often Rin likes to fluster and tease her. Maki quickly crawls over Rin to keep her down on her back, smirking a bit. “So you think kissing is dumb?”

“That’s… that’s not what Rin meant…” Rin looks left, and right, anywhere but up at Maki.

“Then kiss me.”

“Maki-chan, you’re so mean!”

“Fine, then I’ll kiss you.”

“Nya—?!”

More things explode in the background and there are hoarse yells and gunfire and even more explosions, all accompanied by booming drums and metal guitar. It’s not exactly a romantic backdrop for an impromptu makeout session but they somehow make it work for longer than necessary, Maki holding onto Rin’s wrists to prevent her from flipping their positions.

The credits are rolling now— has it really been that long?— and Rin half-heartedly complains about missing the end of the movie, trying to sit up.

Maki quickly shuts her up with another kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> they were watching mad max fury road tbh


	27. ran and ren

Rin and Maki sit side by side, and on the other end of the table are two _catlike_ women who stare at Maki like predators scoping out their prey. Of course they’re catlike. It’s ridiculous. Maki really didn’t know what else she was supposed to expect.

“Maki-chan, these are my sisters!” Rin finally breaks the silence and motions between them.

“It’s very nice to meet you,” Maki carefully keeps her voice steady and respectfully bows her head.

“Likewise,” one of them says, breaking a little smile. “I’m Ran.”

“And I’m Ren.”

Maki straightens up and blinks. Did she not hear correctly…? “Er, sorry?”

They point to each other. “Ran.” “Ren.”

Maki really isn’t sure if they’re just fucking around with her, out of obligation as protective but quirky older siblings, but— but wait. What? “What?”

“Maki-chan, don’t be rude! That’s Ran, and the other one is Ren!” Rin lightly nudges Maki, and now she’s mostly certain she’s being messed with.

“Heh… you’re not serious, are you?”

All three catlike Hoshizoras stare unblinking at her, and Maki gulps. She rubs her forehead. This family, she swears. “Let me get this straight. Your parents decided to name you three Rin, Ran, and Ren.”

“Yep!”

“I see.” Maki slowly nods.

She doesn’t visit the Hoshizoras’ household very often after that. 


	28. 3 am

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> from a request for Maki initiating a kiss

The world is quiet at three AM, sort of. Warm limbs sprawled beside each other and crumpled sheets and the steady humming of the air conditioner blend into one another in pure sensation, and Maki can tell from the sensation of Rin’s breathing that she’s awake as well. 

Rin probably knows Maki is awake, too, and she wriggles in closer as if to test her theory. It’s not very quiet anymore. Maki pushes uselessly with the heel of her palm and Rin laughs out loud. 

“Shhh…” Maki gives up and pulls her in, heavy sigh and all. She murmurs in a low voice, though not tiredly. “Go to sleep.”

Like an excited child on Christmas Eve, Rin wriggles again and makes a sort of _no_ sound. What is she even staying up for? Like Maki would know. Maybe she’s just restless. 

Rin’s face is too close to hers on the pillow and she can’t see much else in the dark, but Maki doesn’t need to see in order to inch forward and clumsily find Rin’s lips with her own. 

There’s a small moment of surprise from Rin but she eagerly kisses back, just as expected. She boldly moves her hand down Maki’s back to her hip, and Maki shivers and kisses with more ferocity as if battling to stay in control. There is no control though, just Maki pretending like she’s in charge since she started the kiss.

Rin smells and tastes and feels like Rin. Which is a silly thought, because what else would she smell and taste and feel like? Eventually Maki pulls her tongue back, then her lips back, chin back, forehead pressed against Rin’s. Their eyes are closed. It’s a bit too warm but Maki doesn’t care, and she figures Rin cares even less.

“Good night, Rin.”

“Good night, Maki-chan.”


	29. rollercoaster

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> original prompt: "rinmaki at an amusement park. maki won't admit she's too afraid to ride the roller coaster, and tries to stall so she doesn't have to ride it."

The thing is a towering structure of rattling steel and screams and _death_ and Maki wants nothing to do with it, frankly.

Not because she’s scared or anything. It’s perfectly reasonable to avoid those things, isn’t it? There could be a malfunction. Accident. People could die. When they die they are dead. Etcetera.

Plus, the peak of it looks really, _really_ high up.

“Maki-chan, hurry! The ride’s gonna close soon!” But of course Rin has no concept of fear. Maybe it has something to do with how cats have nine lives. Maki digs her heels into the ground and tries to steady her shaking knees.

How dare her knees betray her in this crucial situation.

“H-hey, it’s getting late, isn’t it? That means we should go find the others and meet up. Right?” Maki’s getting dragged closer and closer to the entrance and _she can smell death approaching_. “The line’s also way too long, we’ll end up spending the rest of the day just standing around, and— and, this ride doesn’t look that safe— I mean _great_ anyway—“

“Maki-chan!” Rin turns and stares directly at her. Maki gulps. “It’s now or never!”

“Let’s do it another day when there’s less crowds.”

“No! Now or never!”

“Rin! _Listen_ to me-!”

“If you’re scared I’ll hold your hand!”

Maki freezes. “I- I’m not scared!”

“Your legs are shaking, nya.”

“No! They’re not!”

They end up arguing long enough that the ride closes, so it worked out in Maki’s favor anyway.


	30. underwater

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> original request: rinmaki kissing in the pool

Three, two, one…

Surprisingly it isn’t Maki who shrieks; it’s Rin, caught unaware while she was looking at something else. She surfaces and coughs up water she had accidentally inhaled.

“Maki-chan?!”

“Consider that as payback for the other time you pushed _me_ into the pool,” Maki’s trying to look indifferent, arms crossed and chin up, but she can’t hide the smug lilt in her voice. “So? How does it feel to— _ueehh!?_ ”

Rin’s arms had suddenly shot out of the water and grabbed Maki’s ankles, yanking her in. The two splash and struggle as Maki smacks Rin and Rin tries to hold on for dear life, or for whatever other dumb reason.

“Rin—! Let _go_ of me!”

“You first, nya!”

Maki has a secure grip on a small handful of Rin’s hair and her shoulder, and Rin’s eyes widen with realization and she takes a deep breath just a second before Maki shoves her underwater.

Of course, Maki is pulled beneath the surface as well. The chlorine stings her eyes and she kicks and punches blindly without really thinking.

Then something _warm_ is messily pushing against her lips. One of Maki’s hands is still hanging onto Rin’s hair, and she realizes their faces are too close together and that something warm is Rin’s lips.

Bubbles escape between their faces, tickling her skin and hair, and Maki shoots upwards to gasp for air. Rin shortly follows.

“Wh-what was that for?!” Maki sputters, letting go of Rin and putting a hand to her mouth.

“I’ve always wanted to try an underwater kiss!” Rin cheerfully laughs and reaches over to rest her arms on Maki’s shoulders. Maki doesn’t brush them away. “It was a little harder than I expected, nya…”

“That’s probably because I was trying to hit you.”

“… Do you wanna try again? With less hitting this time?” Rin asks hopefully, moving a bit closer.

Maki rubs at her face and laughs with some tinge of exasperation. Rin isn’t even upset about being shoved into the pool or smacked around by Maki, she just wants to _kiss_. Go figure.

“Take a deep breath…”


	31. after school

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> prompt: rinmaki cuddles after a long day at school

“Nyaaaa, I’m so tired! Time for a catnap…” Rin drops her bag on the floor and immediately dives for the bed— _Maki’s_ bed, with its neatly made sheets and carefully arranged pillows.

“Hey-! Rin, get off my bed!” Maki dashes after her a moment too late, dropping her bag as well. A pillow falls to the floor as Rin rolls and writhes like a dog getting in a comfortable position for sleep, completely ignoring Maki’s command.

It isn’t until Maki picks up that pillow and smacks Rin across the face with it does she stop moving and messing up the covers.

“No cats allowed on the furniture. Now get off!” She tugs uselessly at Rin’s arm.

“But I’m so tiiireeed…”

“Then sleep on the floor, for all I care!”

“Okay!”

Maki loses her balance as Rin suddenly stops resisting, and she winds up yanking the other girl right on her as she topples backwards on the floor with a yelp and  _thump_.

Rin’s already wrapping her arms and legs around Maki like some sort of koala before Maki can get up. She groans and pushes at Rin’s shoulders half-heartedly, too tired to actually put much effort into it. But she’s warm and soft, and her smell is comforting, and Maki doesn’t really mind those parts.

“You’re _heavy_.”

“And you’re tired too, aren’t you?” Rin nuzzles Maki’s cheek and she rolls over so that they’re both lying on their sides. “Maki-chan! Rest with Rin, nya! We can do homework later.”

She really shouldn’t. She should just shove this clingy moron off and maybe sweep her under the bed as if that would spare Maki from any more annoyance. But Maki only flicks Rin’s forehead and squirms, though not away from the embrace. Their legs are tangled together now.

“Did I mention your breath stinks?”

“Nya—?!”

“Kidding. I’m kidding.” Just to prove it, she pecks Rin on the corner of her mouth and sighs, snuggling a bit closer and draping an arm over her, slowly rubbing her back. “You’re really such a pain, sometimes.”

“Sorry, Maki-chan…”

“It’s fine. Now be quiet and go to sleep.”


	32. bad influence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original request: "nozomi and eli helping out rin and maki discover their gayness for each other"

“Rin. _Rin_. Stop looking at me like that.” 

But Rin just bats her eyelashes and scoots closer to Maki. 

And in turn, Maki pushes against the other girl’s forehead to keep her at bay. 

“But Maaaakiiii-chaaaan-!” 

“I told you to stop, didn’t I?! Quit making that face! It— it looks so weird!” 

Meanwhile, from a window on the second floor, Nozomi and Eli watch as Maki continues to grapple with Rin and smush at her face with her hands. Eli glances at Nozomi’s wide smile and, maybe it’s just a hunch, _maybe_ , but she has a feeling Nozomi had something to do with the intense bedroom eyes Rin is currently making at Maki.

“Ahh~ I’ve taught Rin-chan so well…!” Nozomi wipes imaginary tears from her eyes like a proud parent of an honor student. 

“Nozomi,” Eli doesn’t mean to sound like she’s pleading. But, she’s pleading. “Please don’t teach our underclassmen weird things.” 

“Next, I’ll teach Rin-chan about my secret washi washi max technique!” 

“ _Nozomi!”_


	33. interview

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original prompt: "Maki is a pianist and Rin is a journalist that has come to interview her"

Maki is good at appearing poised and proper, unlike this journalist sitting across from her with that sloppy, slouched posture and her legs slightly spread apart. Everything from her wrinkled shirt collar to the bite marks on the end of the pen tells the tale of someone with a bad habit of negligence. But she’s been surprisingly professional during the interview and Maki can’t find much reason to complain. 

“Soooo,” Rin scratches behind her ear with the pen and flips through her notepad, murmuring to herself without ever glancing at Maki. 

Which is totally rude considering that this is _the_ Maki Nishikino, whose solo album just debuted and peaked at the charts. It’s hard to maintain success like that and she wants _respect_ for her efforts, damn it. 

But Maki likes to pretend she’s a patient person and stares at the cooling pot of tea between them without comment. Rin makes an affirmative sound and suddenly makes eye contact when they both look up at the same time. Maki’s pulse strums. 

“What’s your type of ideal partner?”

“E-eh?” 

Maki’s cool demeanor breaks for a moment. But— ah, right, fans like knowing that kind of… stuff, don’t they? Still, the journalist asks it in such an informal manner it catches Maki off guard. She quickly looks away and huffs through her nose, collecting herself. 

“I suppose… someone who’s kind, and gentle, and makes me laugh.” 

Rin hums and nods and jumps right to the next question, and Maki’s already prepared to fire off more generic impersonal answers. 

“What about looks?”

“A fit body and a good-looking face. Soft hair, too.”

“What would you look for in a relationship?”

“Stability and lifelong happiness.” 

“What sorta things would you wanna do on a date?”

“A romantic dinner and a trip downtown in the evening.”

“Have you ever been in a relationship?”

“N— no.”

“Do you want to be in one?”

Things go quiet. Rin’s smile slowly widens and she _winks_ , and Maki’s pulse strums again. She realizes Rin hadn’t even been writing anything down. Wait, what?

“What?”

“Have you ever thought about balancing a relationship with your career?”

She’s slowly catching on and her mouth opens. This journalist— “Are you hitting on me?!” 

Rin leans back and laughs heartily. For a moment, Maki’s afraid that she completely misinterpreted the situation and that she made herself look like a fool. But then Rin nods, completely unashamed, and grins. 

“Sorry! I really couldn’t help myself…”

Maki should be furious. She should be disgusted. Instead, she’s flustered and confused and maybe just a little angry. “You…! What kind of reporter are you?! Don’t ask weird questions for your own personal interest!” 

“You didn’t even give me honest answers! Those were totally boring ones. I know you’re way more interesting than that, Nishikino-san.” The damn journalist is still grinning and she gathers her things. She stands up but Maki remains in her seat, red in the face and unable to think of a retort. 

“So let’s have another chat sometime! When I’m not working! Thanks for your time!” Rin pushes a small scrap of paper at Maki before heading for the door with a childish bounce in her step. Maki only makes a weird, frustrated sound from the back of her throat and grips the paper in her fist. 

Then she’s alone in her apartment and everything feels too quiet. A long, long moment passes before Maki uncurls her fingers and smooths out the paper, groaning when she sees the numbers and “ _call me or i’ll call u ;)”_ scrawled below it.

“She could’ve just left a business card…” 


	34. sappy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original prompt: "Imagine person A crying. person B panics because person A never cries. What does person B do?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> these are being posted in backwards chronological order so u can see the quality of writing steadily decreasing lmao

It’s funny how three easy words can carry the blunt force of a sledgehammer.

Maki helplessly grips Rin’s shoulders as her entire body wracks with sobs, back curled over with her face hidden from Maki. She’s seen Rin get emotional over plenty of things, from family movies where the dog dies at the end to flattened squirrels on the road, but she can’t recall Rin crying hard enough that she seems more or less unable to speak.

“R-Rin?! Get ahold of yourself!” She almost winces at how callous that sounds, but Maki hopes the concern in her voice carries through. If that doesn’t, then Rin should at least be able to hear the panic and confusion.

Rin doesn’t get ahold of herself, but she does get a hold on Maki; she falls forward with her arms enclosing around her, and Maki can already feel Rin’s tears through the thin fabric of her shirt. There’s probably some snot there too, and it’s kinda _gross_ , but that’s not her biggest worry at the moment.

“I- I’m- Immshhghhrrrr!” Rin wails into Maki’s shirt, sobbing like a baby.

“What’s the matter with you?!” Maki doesn’t try to push her away, instead frantically alternating between patting and rubbing small circles on her back. “I just said…!”

Rin wails something else, but just like before, her words are completely unintelligible. Still, Maki is starting to have an idea of what she’s trying to articulate.

 _I love you_.

Maki isn’t sure if she wants to embrace or smack this… this…

Well, sure, it’s the first time she had actually outright conveyed her feelings to Rin without reluctant mutterings and embarrassed scowls, but. Jeez.

The first time Maki says, _I love you_ , and Rin basically breaks down into an inconsolable mess. That’s just wonderful.

“I love you too, M-M-Maki-chan!!” Rin’s finally looking up and her face is smeared with tears and snot, and this is far from the sweet romantic scenarios that had always played through Maki’s head when she rehearsed those three words in her mind so many times ( _I love you_ ), but her heart still swells and she swears those aren’t tears forming in the corners of her own eyes. No way.

“I…” Her heart skips another beat and Maki realizes she’s smiling wide, like a lovestruck moron, and she hugs Rin close. “I love you. S-so you can stop crying now.”

“But you’re crying too, Maki-chan!”

“I am _not!_ Be quiet!”

“I love you, I love you, I love youuuuu!”

“Ahhh, stop it! Cut it out, already! I love you too!”

She’s definitely crying as well now, but for whatever reason, Maki doesn’t feel ashamed or embarrassed at all.


	35. kissy

“Stressing will only make you sweat.”

“Don’t keep your eyes open. You’ll go cross-eyed if you try to look at her.”

“A little tongue and teeth never hurt~ have you ever tried biting her lip?”

“Remember to put your hands somewhere, too.”

Maki presses her forehead against the cool surface of the table and groans. It’s more like a growl with how much frustration is practically steaming out of her ears, but the same message applies. Eli and Nozomi are sitting on her left and right, counting off _something_ on their fingers.

“Elicchi sometimes likes to put her hands on my chest when we kiss~”

“You, you don’t have to tell her _that_ much. But she has a point…”

“Though with Rin-chan, maybe her waist or ass would be better?”

“Ah! Breathe through your nose, not your mouth.”

This is too much. Way too much. Maki slaps her hands over her ears to drown out any more of their prattling and sits upright, glaring straight ahead with a noticeably red tinge on her face, and not just on her forehead from where she’d been pressing it against the table.

“ _I never asked either of you for advice_. Leave me alone!”

Nozomi only smiles and pats Maki’s back. Eli coughs into her fist though it’s obvious she’s smiling too. Suddenly Maki feels very, very grateful that she’s an only child and has no older siblings at home.

“Like I was saying, your hands should go somewhere…” Nozomi puts a finger to her chin in thought and Maki just about screams, but all she does is make another one of those choked groaning noises.

“Did you even listen to what I said?!”

“Sorry. I guess we just got a little too eager about helping you,” Eli gently laughs. “Call it big sister instincts?”

“Oh, Maki-chan…!” Nozomi seems to have suddenly realized something and leans over to look Maki directly in the face. “You _have_ kissed Rin-chan already, haven’t you?”

No answer. Maki begins to quietly shake and her ears turn red. Anger or embarrassment? Probably more of the latter. Eli coughs into her fist again. It’s been a couple weeks since Rin and Maki had started dating, so Nozomi and Eli had just assumed.

“Sorry, sorry!” Eli’s apologizing again but she’s _laughing_ , damn her. “But Rin’s always been so affectionate with you even in public, and all…”

“Even Rin-chan gets shy about some things, doesn’t she?”

“I… I really want to kiss her. That _idiot!_ ” Maki mumbles into her hands, hunched over the table and still shaking. This is literally the worst. Of all the people who had to find out about this and butt in with their perverted advice, it just had to be Nozomi and Eli, didn’t it? And while Rin is indeed open about kisses on the cheek and cuddling where other people can see, she always shies away when their lips come close, even when they’re alone. She obviously doesn’t mean it, but she’s seriously being a tease and Maki can’t stand it.

“Hang in there, Maki-chan!”

“I say it’d be better if you just go for it. I’m sure Rin would be happy if you initiate first.”

“Hey, Elicchi, doesn’t this remind you of when we first started dating?”

“I- I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Heeeh, Elicchi is shy even now, huh?”

Things go suspiciously quiet for a little while, and when Maki uncovers her face she realizes Nozomi and Eli are kissing. Right above her.

Goddamnit.

“Don’t do that when I’m right here, you two—!!”

 _Goddamnit_.

Later that day Maki hunts down Rin, pushes her up against a wall, and kisses her with all that pent up frustration. Onlookers be damned, she can’t take this anymore.

Nozomi and Eli quietly applaud from around a corner.

“Harasho!” 


	36. sick

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> prompt: Maki's sick and Rin has to help (for some reason)

“Maaaki-chan!”

All Rin gets in response is a sniffle and a low groan. But that’s alright, she knows Maki isn’t in any condition to speak too much. Rin pushes the door open with her hip, carrying a tray in her hands.

“Here you go, nya! Some hot tea, and some water, and crackers! Just like you asked!”

“ _Rin_ ,” Maki glares at her from her cocoon of blankets. Or that’s just a resting bitch face. Maki tends to have that sort of expression whenever she’s sick (which thankfully isn’t often, but this isn’t the first time Rin helped take care of Maki).

Ironically, her parents are too busy with other patients at the hospital to personally tend to their daughter, so she’d been left alone at home.

Alone with… Rin, who had headed over the moment she found out Maki was sick. Her housekeeper is out running errands and won’t be back for a while, so it’s just the two of them.

It could be worse, right?

Maki doubles over in a brief coughing fit and groans, and by the time her head stops spinning she realizes Rin had crawled up on the bed next to her, tray put aside, and is firmly hugging her blanket cocoon.

“R–in, don’t do that. You’ll get sick.” More coughing.

“But I’m helping Maki-chan keep warm, nya!”

“Just give me the tea and get out—“ Even more coughing. She can feel Rin snuggling close to her. While it is actually pretty comforting (not that she’d ever let Rin know, god forbid this moron is encouraged) Maki’s starting to feel stifled. She wheezes and shifts, trying to push Rin off while keeping herself wrapped up.

“Healing energy… healing energy… illness, begone!” Rin chants, aggressively cuddling Maki.

Damnit. Maki has to laugh at that, but of course, she only winds up coughing some more. “R-Rin, what are you even…?”

“I’m transferring all of my own healthy vibes to Maki-chan! That way you’ll heal faster!”

“That’s not how this works,” Maki rasps, lying back in defeat. If this idiot really wants to catch whatever Maki has, then so be it.

“So, so? Are you feeling better yet?” Rin leans over Maki’s face, smiling hopefully.

… Aw, jeez. She really is like a little kid. Maki can’t stay mad at her. “Yeah. Sure, I think I actually am. Good job, Rin.”

“Good!” Satisfied, Rin lies back down beside Maki, still hugging her.

“You’re going to get sick like this, you know.”

“Yep, probably!” Rin cheerfully says. She pecks Maki on the cheek. “But that’s alright! I know I’d hate being stuck all alone while I’m sick, so Rin will keep you company no matter what!”

Maki lets out a wheezy sigh and disentangles her arms from the blankets to pat Rin’s head. “Sometimes I underestimate how stubborn you really are. But… thank you, Rin.”

They end up taking a nap together like that, tea and crackers forgotten. By the time they wake up a few hours later, Maki is feeling much better but now Rin is pale and clammy with coughs tickling her throat.

Well, it’s not like they could’ve expected anything different.


	37. spoiled

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: In which Maki tries to be the stereotypical rich girlfriend during a date in order to spoil Rin. It doesn't work out as she expected.

To be fair, the plans for their date were simple by Maki’s standards and she had little idea how Rin would take it. First, some shopping in an area downtown where the sidewalks are lined with expensive shiny granite and the stores are sleek and fashionable. Then, dinner at a high-end restaurant Maki’s parents had once taken her to for a birthday.

Just two things. Totally simple.

Rin had been incredibly flustered and bashful when Maki insisted that she treat her girlfriend just for one evening, but now she just seems more flustered and nervous than bashful. It probably started with finding out they were being escorted by a chauffeur who would also be carrying their things. He stands a ways off to the side, standing tall and stiff and keeping a watchful eye on the girls’ surroundings. After a while, Rin begins to forget he’s even there.

“I feel like I’m not supposed to touch anything in here, nya…!” Rin whispers even though they’re in the middle of a store with other people browsing around.

“What are you talking about? Don’t be silly, of course you can touch things.” Maki sorts through some button-up shirts, and pulls one out in Rin’s size.

“But it’s true! Rin’s never been in a store like this!”

“So there’s a first time for everything. Here— stand still, I think this one would look good on you.” Maki holds the shirt up to Rin, looking her over and nodding in approval.

“I dunno…”

The look on Rin’s face makes Maki feel bad. She didn’t really think much about it before, but Rin probably feels awkward and out of place in a store meant for people who can afford to spend millions of yen on clothes and accessories. Maki isn’t one to spend money so frivolously on herself, but she’s more than willing to buy lots of nice things for Rin. That’s what she had been thinking when she brought her girlfriend here, honestly.

“Rin, look at me.” Maki tries not to sound so harsh like she usually does, and gently puts a hand on the smaller girl’s shoulder. “This night is for you, alright? If there’s anything here you want, just tell me. Seriously. I-I want you to be happy, so…”

Great, now she’s getting herself flustered. But it seems to do the trick, and Rin steps close to peck Maki on the cheek.

It only makes Maki more flustered, but.

“That’s okay! Maki-chan doesn’t have to buy stuff for Rin to be happy, nya.”

“Well, I insist-!” Maki furiously goes through a rack of shirts to hide the blush on her face. She ends up buying four new outfits for Rin despite the latter’s protests. They’re both pretty red in the face by the time they’re done with this store, and Maki only then realizes they have even more shops to check out in adjacent buildings.

Rin, meanwhile, has no idea how to feel about being spoiled so lavishly, so she just allows Maki to lead her along and pick out clothes for her to try on.

.

.

If RIn felt out of place in those designer brand stores, she feels even more awkward in the restaurant Maki takes her too. The chairs are cushy leather. The tablecloth feels like silk. _There’s some guy playing a piano in the back_. All around them are adults in fine dresses and suits swirling glasses of wine that probably cost a fortune. Rin is wearing one of the outfits Maki had bought her earlier so she can at least rest knowing she doesn’t stick out by appearances, but when she picks up the menu (thick creamy paper set in a soft plush frame gilded with silver) she has no idea what any of this stuff says.

“Um, Maki-chan?”

“Yes?” Maki doesn’t look up from the menu, brows slightly furrowed. Maybe she doesn’t know what this stuff is either? Unlikely. Rin gulps.

“Can you… just order for me?”

Maki does look up at that, looking slightly concerned. “Is there nothing on the menu you like? Should we go find a different restaurant? It’s fine, I know another place down the block that’s even better—“

“No no no, that’s not it!” Rin consciously tries to keep her voice down. They had already gotten some funny looks when they came in, a couple of teenagers eating at such a high-end place with only adult patrons, and Rin could do without attracting more attention.

Man, this is embarrassing. Maki is still looking at her with that worry in her eyes, too. Rin clears her throat and takes a sip of water.

“Rin, what’s the matter?”

Yeah, really embarrassing. Rin hangs her head. “I don’t know anything on this menu…”

“Oh.”

But Maki looks pretty embarrassed too, now. She puts her menu down and plays with her hair, and quickly waves off an approaching waiter. “Well, what do you normally like to eat?” She quickly adds: “Besides ramen. This place doesn’t have ramen.”

“Um, stuff like katsudon, and yakisoba, pretty simple stuff Rin’s mom makes…”

“Rin, this is a French restaurant.”

“Really?!”

Someone glances over at the pair and Rin covers her mouth.

“I-it’s fine. I’ll just order for you, if you’re really okay with that.”

Rin nods, and slides her hand down to uncover her mouth. “I trust Maki-chan’s tastes, nya.”

But Maki can’t help but wonder if she really does. Their tastes seem to be pretty different, after all.

.

.

“Nyaa, I’m so full…!” Now that they’re out of that restaurant and outside, Rin seems much more relaxed, all the tension gone from her shoulders and brow. She had fumbled with some of the expensive silverware, and choked on a sprig of thyme at one point, but the dinner went more smoothly than Maki had worried. She smiles and takes Rin’s hand in her own as they slowly make their way down the street, the crowds no thinner than they were before.

“It was your first time trying that kind of food, wasn’t it?”

“Yeah! I didn’t even know snails grew that big! They were super chewy, too!”

The wonder and awe in Rin’s voice is… cute. Too cute. Maki looks the other way, hiding her smile behind her hand before realizing she doesn’t really have a reason to cover it up.

“And the filly… filly minny…”

“Filet mignon.”

“Yeah, that! That was really good!”

The Nishikinos’ chauffeur is waiting by their car at the end of the street, all their shopping bags already placed in the trunk. Rin squeezes Maki’s hand and Maki squeezes back.

“I’ll take you out for Kobe beef, next time.”

“Maki-chan!” Rin stops walking and tugs Maki to a halt as well. “You’re trying too hard to spoil Rin!”

“H-huh?”

Rin grabs her other hand before Maki can react, now standing face-to-face a bit too close. A few people glance at them as they walk around the two, but this time Rin doesn’t seem to care about attracting attention. “Tonight was a lot of fun, and I’m happy that Maki-chan really wants Rin to be happy, but…”

Oh no, the dreaded “but”. Maki swallows heavily. Are her palms sweaty? They’re probably sweaty.

“But next time, how about we just stay home and watch a movie together?”

Oh. Maki blinks. “You don’t want to go out like this, again?”

“Hehe, it was a little excessive…” Rin still hasn’t let go of her hands, so that must be a good sign at least. “Rin doesn’t need a whole lot!”

“So… you’re like a low-maintenance cat.”

“Not like that, nya-!”

“I get it, I get it,” Maki’s smile is lopsided but sincere. Their chauffeur is still patiently waiting for them; a little longer won’t hurt. She closes her eyes when Rin leans in, expecting a kiss, but instead she feels their foreheads gently bump together. A weird sound escapes from the back of her throat. Rin laughs a little.

“Maki-chan, were you hoping for a kiss?”

“N-no! You just caught me off guard!”

Rin isn’t moving away and Maki’s heart is pounding. This is so dumb. They’ve been dating for a while and she still has these kinds of reactions and— oh, Rin’s actually kissing her now, her hands slipping around Maki’s back.

This is fine, too.

“Wow, those girls sure look like really good friends,” someone comments to their friend as they walk by.


	38. pics

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> prompt: Nico stealing Maki's phone in one of their shenanigans but accidentally finding out a whole folder of pics of Rin (taken w/o the other's knowledge ofc)

“H-hey! Nico-chan, cut it out!”

“Aww, I just wanna see what kinda embarrassing stuff you have in your phone!”

“There’s nothing like that! Get off me—!”

“If you have nothing to hide then this shouldn’t be a problem!”

Everyone else in the room is doing their own thing, already more than used to tuning out Nico and Maki’s bickering like white noise in the background. The only one who acknowledges them is Umi, who’s trying to study. She scowls when the noise disturbs her concentration and slams her hand down on her textbook, which makes Hanayo jump but fails to grab Nico and Maki’s attention.

“Honestly… they could at least have their fights outside in the hall.”

“Oh, let them be. You can’t disturb the natural order, after all,” Nozomi smiles and pats Umi arm.

“…Nozomi, are you really eating popcorn right now?”

“Shh, I think we’re getting to the good part.”

Maki finally topples over with an ungraceful _ueehh?!_ , allowing Nico to snatch her sleek little smartphone from her hand and scramble away, cackling in triumph.

“Give it back—!!”

“No way! What the hell, you don’t even have a passcode lock?! Too easy! Now let’s see what we’ve got here…”

“Nooooo!”

Nico suddenly falls silent and her expression goes oddly blank. Everyone else looks up almost in sync (except for Nozomi, who’s leaning forward over her popcorn with rapt attention) when they notice their background noise gone. Maki’s face is in her hands and her ears match the color of her hair.

“… Cats.” Nico blankly says, slowly scrolling through something.

“Cats?” Kotori repeats.

“Cats.”

“I-it’s not what it looks like—“ Maki stutters, stumbling in an attempt to grab her phone, but Nico easily dodges. Aw, jeez, everyone’s watching now. Maki wonders if she can escape by jumping from the window, or something, but then she remembers they’re not on the first floor.

“ _Cats!”_ Nico loudly whispers in horror.

“Nya!”

“Rin, you idiot! These are all pictures of _you!_ ”

“Nya?!”

“N-n-no they’re not! They’re not! It’s not—!” Maki’s rapidly breaking down by the second and she just about shrieks when Nico turns the phone for everyone to see, swiping through pictures and lingering on each one only for a second.

It’s all Rin. Every single picture Nico displays on the phone is of Rin, and it’s obvious from the angles and the way Rin seems distracted in each one that they were taken without her knowledge. Maki muffles a wail into her hands and curls up on the floor, trembling, and Nozomi is shoveling popcorn into her mouth with her eyebrows arched high. This is way better than all her other TV dramas.

“Holy crap.” Honoka blurts out, finally breaking the stunned silence.

All at once, their heads turn towards Rin, who… looks more curious than shocked or disgusted. Even her head is slightly cocked like an animal that heard something interesting.

“That’s a lot of Rin, nya…”

 _“We have a pervert amongst us!_ ” Nico yells, pointing at Maki with her free hand, still holding up the phone with the other. “Uh, aside from Nozomi, that is.”

“Thank you, Nicocchi.”

“Don’t thank me for something like that!!”

“Maki…? Would you, uh, like to explain?” Ah, good ol’ Eli, always trying to do damage control. Except that’s a whole lot of damage and maybe even the student council president won’t be able to fix it.

Maki makes a gargled sound, still curled up on her side.

“Maki-chan…” Rin stands up. Everything falls silent once more. Except for the sound of popcorn being crunched— thanks, Nozomi. Rin slowly walks over to Maki and crouches beside her, one of her hands awkwardly hovering over her shoulder.

“Listen, Rin, you have every right to smack that pervert across the room if you want.” Nico is looking through the photos again, eyes narrowed. She mutters to herself. “How many pictures of Rin does Maki even have in here…?”

“Maki-chan, it’s alright!” Rin gently pries Maki’s hands away from her face, smiling that stupidly sunny smile that had prompted Maki to start taking pictures of her in the first place. “Rin knows you have a hard time expressing yourself…”

“I-I do not!”

“You kind of do…” Kotori helpfully chirps up.

“So!” Rin continues. “I dunno how to say it, but I don’t mind if Maki-chan likes taking pictures of me, nya! Because I really like you too! It’s kind of embarrassing… but that’s alright! Because Maki-chan is an embarrassing person, and that’s cute!”

Nozomi’s practically choking on her popcorn. This is gold.

“Rin,” Nico deadpans. “I found pictures of you sleeping.”

“Nya?!”

“I-I’m sorry, okay?!” Maki clings to Rin’s shirt, head bowed. “I just… I don’t know what I was thinking!”

“Rin doesn’t know what she’s thinking most of the time either!”

“Wow, you two are perfect for each other.” Nico drops the phone on the table at last, finally done with looking through it. “Seriously though, that was way too weird for comfort.”

“Don’t worry, Maki-chan.” It looks like Nozomi ran out of popcorn. She laces her fingers together and smiles brightly. “I understand how you feel. I have an album just for pictures of Elicchi, myself.”

“Wait— what?! N-Nozomi?!”

“That’s it. This is getting to be too much. I’m out of here.” Nico throws up her hands, grabbing her bag and leaving the room. No one tries to stop her.

“Ah, guys…?” Hanayo timidly raises her hand. “Umi-chan passed out a while ago…”

“Umi-chan?! Umi-chan, don’t die!! Wake up!! Umi-chaaaan…!” Honoka dives over and vigorously shakes her friend by the shoulders, yelling in her face. Umi, her face pale, mumbles something about shameless indecencies, or something. Kotori grabs a piece of paper to fan her with.

“This day could have gone a lot better.” Maki mumbles, rubbing her temples. She doesn’t try to push Rin away when the other girl clings.

“Does this mean we’re dating, nyow?”

Maki considers her options. They’re surprisingly limited, but she doesn’t care anymore. Her lips quirk in a sort of lopsided smile and she leans against Rin. “Yes. Yes, Rin, we’re dating.”

“Hehe, yay!”

“Someone get Umi-chan some water! I think she’s slipping away!!”

“Umi-chaaaaan!”

“Nozomi, were you serious when you said…?!”

“What do you think, Elicchi~?”

“Somebody saaave uuuuus!!”

Nico probably made the right choice when she decided to leave early.


	39. smooches

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> this is the earliest rinmaki fic i wrote (that i'm willing to post here), awesome!!!! 
> 
> original request: "how about some rinmaki smoochies"

“Maaaaki-chan.”

Rin presses herself against Maki’s back with a slow hug, much more gentle than she normally is. Honestly, that sort of thing catches Maki off guard more than Rin’s usual tackles, and she isn’t sure if Rin’s messing around or if she’s in one of those rare moods when she’s sleepy and isn’t moving much.

“Did you need something?” Maki rapidly blinks when she feels Rin’s lips press behind her ear, warm breath tickling red hair aside. Ah, so that’s what it is.

“Maki-chan’s hair smells sweet as usual~”

“Cut it out. You’re breathing in my _eeear?_ ” The last word is lilted up in surprise when Rin suddenly slides around, plopping herself right down on Maki’s lap and nuzzling her face, arms loosely wrapped around her neck.

Maki sighs in defeat and puts her book down. She won’t be able to read it with this cat on her lap, anyway.

“Let’s go out for ramen with Kayo-chin, later!” Rin says as she plants a series of light kisses up Maki’s jaw. The gesture is completely innocent on Rin’s part but it still sends a shiver up Maki’s back. Goddamnit. “I got extra allowance this week so I can pay for you guys, nya!”

“Sure,” Maki vaguely says, patting Rin’s back and waiting for her to stop kissing her face. She does, but then those lips are pressing against Maki’s mouth and she’s warm— soft, too, and Maki finds herself slowly kissing back to match Rin’s unusually lazy movements without thinking much about it.

Rin pulls back only an inch to release an airy giggle before resuming the kiss with slightly more gusto. Yeah, it’s not so bad. For once, Maki’s relaxed enough to go along with her affections. She feels Rin’s fingers weave through her hair, holding her close, and Maki’s hands slide down to her lower back.

Nico, who had been sitting at the opposite side of the table, loudly growls. “Could you two kids maybe do that when _I’m out of the room?!”_


	40. beer stains

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> prompt: "RinMaki at a college party. Rin accidentally spills beer down Maki's shirt and then offers to help her take it off"

Sure, Honoka could be blamed for getting too rowdy and bumping into everyone and everything, and maybe even Nozomi can share part of the blame for discreetly pushing Maki right onto the collision path, but in the end it’s only Rin who gets yelled at.

Well, she’s also yelling back, but everyone’s kind of tipsy and the party is loud so that isn’t the biggest issue.

“What’s your problem?!” Maki gnashes her teeth and glares down at her ruined blouse. The cost isn’t such a huge deal, being the rich girl she is, but it’s the principal of the matter.

Whatever that means.

Honoka’s teetering off to crash into her next unlucky victim, anyway. Her latest victim, Rin, drops her now-emptied cup and holds her hands up in a placating gesture.

“I already said sorry!” Rin awkwardly makes a move to grab at the hem of Maki’s shirt without thinking. Weirdly enough, Maki doesn’t stop her. “I, um, Rin could help clean it, so, so I—“

“Jeez, forget about it.” Only then does Maki swat her hands away.

“No, wait! I’ll help you take your shirt off!”

“I wasn’t even going to!”

“No no no, Rin has to help!”

“Agh—“

With some totally discreet nudging from Nozomi as she passes by, they somehow end up sprawled on the couch with Rin lying on top of a shirtless Maki. Snapped to sobriety, Rin sputters an apology and tries to get up, but a pair of surprisingly strong arms catch her around her neck. Maki glowers, more flushed from the alcohol than any embarrassment.

“You’re gonna take responsibility, aren’t you?” she hisses, pulling Rin closer.

“I- I did say that, didn’t I…?”

And then Honoka throws a cup of beer on them as she runs by, whooping.


	41. rainy

It’s starting to rain out of nowhere. The forecast totally lied. There are more important things to be annoyed about, but Maki figures tonight is a good time as any to be irritated by a miscalculation in the weather.

She frowns and wipes a droplet of water away from her forehead, looking up just at the right second to receive another splash in her eye.

“Seriously…?” Beside her, Rin’s cheerful expression slides off to be replaced with scrunched brows and a little frown. Rin looks up as well but doesn’t flinch like Maki did when the rain begins to drop on her face.

“It was supposed to be clear tonight! The weather guy totally lied, nya!”

“It happens,” Maki says indifferently, already turning around back the way they came from. The rain’s already starting to fall in heavier drips that soak the back of her shirt. “Come on, Rin. You’ll get wet if you keep running around in circles like that.”

“But Rin was really excited about stargazing tonight!” Rin does a little twist in front of Maki, holding her arms out wide like she’s trying to catch the rain. Then she leans forward a bit, that Rin-like smile back with a vengeance. “And I know Maki-chan was excited too, even if she was trying to act cool about it~”

“Cut it out!” Maki pushes at her shoulders a bit. They’re caught in the beginnings of a downpour now, and Maki shivers involuntarily. “Let’s just go, okay? We can catch the next train back if we walk quickly.”

“But the stargazing!”

“Do you think we’ll be seeing any stars like this?” She impatiently swats one of Rin’s flapping hands away. “You said it yourself. It was supposed to be clear tonight.”

Everything’s dark and gray and wet now, the only light they have coming from a little flashlight Maki had the sense to bring along. She can still see the city through the thickening curtain of rain like an island beacon, reassuring her they haven’t wandered too far out in the hills. Rin is still running around and bouncing, and now slipping a bit in wet grass, letting the rain slip down her hair and seep into her clothes.

She hollers and runs ahead, almost slips a few times, headed straight for the top of the hill despite Maki’s yelling and flashlight-waving.

So with few other options left, Maki runs after her.

For a split second Rin disappears over the crest and Maki is left alone in the rain on that grassy slope, still yelling uselessly against the shushing of the rain. Her eyes widen and she runs a bit faster, suddenly grateful for all those running exercises up the shrine stairs Umi made them do every morning.

“ _Rin!_ Hey!” Maki shouts again. She can’t see well with her bangs plastered over her eyes and more rain everywhere; just before she reaches the top she violently slips with a little shriek, the thoughts of mud on her clothes a worry in the back of her mind, then a hand catches her arm before she hits the ground. Rin is grinning at her with sunshine that seems to break through the evening rain. Maki’s heart is still racing ahead of her.

“Maki-chan, c’mon!” Rin hauls her up, only to suddenly yank her down to sit on the ground with her.

 _Now_ there’s mud on her clothes. Maki smacks Rin’s shoulder but the other girl only laughs.

“Look, look!” Rin presses herself close to Maki and sweeps an arm out in front of them, towards the sprawling field, then the train station, train tracks, and finally at the city in the distance. “The city lights look like a patch of stars.”

It only sounds beautiful in words. The only thing Maki sees is rain and a wasted evening. But she also sees Rin’s radiant smile too close to her face, and her shoulders relax.

“That doesn’t count as stargazing, Rin.”

“I guess not!” Rin says without missing a beat, pulling her knees up to her chest. “But, you know, the stars are still out there. They’re just hiding behind the rain clouds.”

She extends a hand above them. Rain drips down her sleeve. “The best place to stargaze would have to be on top of the clouds! Wouldn’t that be amazing, Maki-chan?”

That’s utterly ridiculous because they’d need an airplane or helicopter or hot air balloon to even get up there, but for a moment Maki imagines sitting on a damp cloud with Rin at her side and nothing but the clear universe above them. Maybe her heart skips a beat there, and Maki is glad the rain and dim lighting are doing a good job of hiding the warmth on her face.

“How long do you want to sit out here? We’re getting soaked, in case you forgot.”

Rin makes a little _oh_ sound like the mud soaking into their pants and the rain crawling down their skin had actually slipped from her mind. She jumps up to her feet, splashing Maki a bit, and vigorously shakes herself from head to her toes like a damn dog.

A clap of thunder startles them both and hides Maki’s bit of laughter when she tilts the flashlight up and sees how ridiculous Rin looks with her hair all wet and sticking out everywhere. She grabs Rin’s hand before she can run off, and the two of them carefully make their way back to the train station as the rain picks up.


	42. cat training

There’s a little _tap tap_ at the window, maybe more of a _scratch scratch_ like a dog wanting to be let inside, but Maki doesn’t even lift her head. Instead, Umi is the one to turn to the noise. She half-expects to see Honoka with her face plastered against the window, but it’s Rin (with her face plastered against the window).

Well, she was half-right. It’s just the other excitable ginger.

“You can tell her to go away,” Maki says, her fingers flying over piano keys in random scales and arpeggios. Umi looks down at the papers spread all over the table and stands to stretch her sore shoulders.

“Wouldn’t that be your job?”

Umi glances over in time to see Maki wrinkle her nose. “Don’t say it like she’s _my_ responsibility. She’s just… Rin.”

Rin’s goofy smile looks even goofier when she’s got her face pressed against the glass, still going _tap tap_ and _scratch scratch_ as if that’d make Maki change her mind about ignoring her. The door won’t keep her at bay for long. Maki’s scales and arpeggios go uninterrupted when Rin finally bursts in after Umi makes no movement to invite her in. 

“Did you need something, Rin?” Umi asks, seeing no reason to tell her to go away just yet.

“Nope! I just wanted to say hi, nya!”

“Alright, _hi_.” Maki doesn’t look up from the piano. “Is that all?”

“Weeell, Rin noticed you guys have been working so hard with this new song, so maybe you’re getting bored or something…”

Bored? That’s hardly the case. Umi sits and begins the arduous task of organizing her drafts. Sure, she’s just about done with the lyrics, but Maki is still struggling with composing the music and interrupting her concentration would leave her in a bad mood for the rest of the session, something Umi could do without. “Thank you for offering to help, Rin, but we can manage this on our own.”

“Aww, but I had some good ideas!”

“No, it’s fine, really.”

“Can I at least do my homework in here, then? I promise I won’t be too loud, nya! You won’t even notice that Rin is here!”

A sour chord suddenly interrupts the scales and arpeggios, making Umi cringe. Maki straightens her back and lets the jagged notes linger in a fermata before lifting her hands away and beckoning to Rin. “Hey. Come here.”

Like an obedient puppy, Rin bounces over to Maki without question. She’s already wordlessly teasing Maki with a crooked grin and a glint in her eyes, telling of her plan to embarrass her in front of Umi and embarrass Umi by proxy, because that’s always so much fun, and—

Maki yanks Rin down to her level by a handful of her blazer and brushes her lips over her ear, softly breathing out. Her other hand cups the back of Rin’s head, pulling her in even closer “Go bother Nozomi and Eli, alright? I’m busy.”

“N-Nyyy—ahh…?” Rin stutters, completely caught off guard. Umi is caught off guard, too, and she violently coughs. Some of her papers fly to the floor. Maki presses a gentle kiss to the corner of Rin’s mouth before letting go.

“ _Rin_.”

“O-okay.”

And just like that, Rin wobbles out the door with a steaming red face and jaw hanging slack. Umi is still coughing, unsure of what she had just seen. Doesn’t it usually go the other way around? Oh, god. What happened to the natural order of these things. 

Maki finally breaks her sour expression with a tiny, tiny smirk, watching Rin’s back as she leaves.


	43. exploitation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> original request: rinmaki with "something bad happened to me and you feel guilty, so I'll exploit it because I actually have feelings for you, but I can't tell you," plot

To absolutely no one’s surprise, Maki Nishikino, resident rich girl, finally brought a servant carrying all her things for her and walking exactly three paces behind her.

Except it’s not a servant. It’s just Rin.

The reason becomes a bit more clear once they notice the bandages wrapped around her right wrist. Of course it makes sense then. Maki can’t do much with her dominant hand out of commission and Rin… well, rumors are quick to spread the news that Rin had accidentally pushed Maki over a cliff, or Rin spilled hot oil on her, or Rin ran out into traffic and Maki heroically pushed Rin out of the way but was too slow to move herself—

Only Hanayo knows the true story of how Maki had fallen out of a tree after trying to climb higher than Rin, unable to resist beating her in a dumb and pointless competition. Naturally, Rin blamed herself for Maki’s fall and they ended up here.

On the rooftop.

Eating lunch.

With Rin trying to feed Maki as carefully as she can.

“No, put a bit of rice on the spoon with the sausage,” Maki turns her nose up at the offered food.

“R-right away, Maki-chan!” Rin digs at the generously stuffed bento on her lap, her own lunch set aside for now. Her lips tremble when she holds the spoon up again— this time with rice— and slowly, slowly, _slowly_ steers it towards Maki’s mouth.

“You better not spill any food on me again, Rin,” Maki coldly says, and she opens her mouth to accept the food. She chews and swallows with a frown. “But stop moving so slowly. I won’t even get to finish my lunch if you keep that pace.”

“I’m sorry! Please forgive me, nya!” Rin would probably throw herself on the ground if she didn’t have Maki’s precious lunch on her lap, so she settles with bowing her head and scooping up another spoonful of rice, this time managing to get a piece of tomato as well. Maki nods in approval and opens her mouth again, glaring like an angry baby bird Hanayo had once seen on a TV documentary.

Hanayo sighs into her riceball.

—

“What do I dooo…” Hanayo buries her face in her arms. Enough was enough; she had eventually wandered off under the pretense of going to the clubroom to watch videos with Nico before their break ended. “I promised Maki-chan I wouldn’t tell!”

Wisely, Nozomi says nothing and continues to shuffle her cards.

“Rin-chan deserves to know that Maki-chan didn’t _really_ hurt her wrist, so she doesn’t have to do everything for Maki-chan… is it slave labor?! Ahhh, poor Rin-chan is being exploited for free labor…!”

A smile spreads on Nozomi’s face. She knew Hanayo would spill the deets eventually.

“B-but I know Maki-chan likes Rin-chan, but— this isn’t the right way to express her feelings! Is it?!” Hanayo’s eyes widen and she slams her fists on the table in an outburst of realization. “No! That was supposed to be a secret—! Nozomi-chan, you can’t tell anyone!!”

Oh, no, this is too good to not share, but Nozomi isn’t _that_ devious. Maybe. She raises a finger to her lips and grins.

“I won’t tell a soul.”

—

“Did you hear?” Nozomi whispers behind Kotori. “Maki-chan’s wrist isn’t actually fractured. She just wants to use Rin-chan as her personal slave. I heard she’s even making Rin-chan help her use the bathroom, too…!”

Kotori gasps into her hand. What a scandal!

—

“… And that’s what Nozomi-chan told me! But you can’t tell a word to anyone, okay? Umi-chan? Honoka-chan?” Kotori bats her eyelashes.

Umi’s face is a deep, deep red, all her thoughts going to the wrong and worst places. Honoka is making a strange sound like… like… a loud honk.

—

“MAKI-CHAN HAS THE HOTS FOR RIN-CHAN AND SHE FAKED HER INJURY TO MAKE RIN-CHAN HER SLAVE!!” Honoka yells into Nico’s ear.

“WHY ARE YOU SHOUTING AT ME!!” Nico yells back, recoiling.

—

“… And yeah, so that’s how emotionally depraved our own little Makkey is. Who would’ve thought, huh? What a perv.” Nico casually examines her nails, leaning against the wall in what she probably thinks is a cool pose.

“Please stop bothering me. I’m trying to get some work done,” Eli says.

—

Hanayo realizes how catastrophic her mistake is about five minutes after Nozomi leaves the room and about ten minutes before the word reaches Eli.

Meanwhile, on the rooftop, Maki is still making Rin feed her.

—

At the very least, Maki is still able to practice with her left hand. She rolls her eyes with feigned annoyance when Rin plops herself down on the bench beside her, careful not to nudge Maki’s wounded arm. She offers a sheepish smile that’s met with more eye-rolling, and Maki quickly looks back down at the piano before a blush can rise to her face.

“Rin could play the other part for you…”

“You don’t even know how to play the piano,” Maki points out.

“But I can try, nya!”

“Just turn the pages for me when I say so.”

“Your wish is my command, Maki-chan!” Rin salutes, and she looks so goofy that Maki almost laughs. _Almost_. The guilt of exaggerating her injury to make Rin do all these things for her is still hanging over her head, but is it really her fault? Rin was the one who offered to help her out in the first place, even after Maki had insisted several times that she wasn’t hurt. What’s wrong with playing along? A lot of things, Maki figures, but Rin doesn’t seem bothered by being ordered around all day.

She misses a note and cringes, distracted by her own thoughts. Oh, damnit, Rin is still sitting way too close, and now she’s leaning in _too close_ with concern all over her dumb face. Maki tries to lean away with little success and stops playing.

“What? I said you just have to turn the pages.”

“Maki-chan?”

“ _What?_ ”

“Are you mad at me?” Then Rin’s suddenly sitting back, (most of) their personal space restored. Maki cautiously straightens up and looks at her, swallowing back another retort when she sees the saturated guilt.

“I really wanted to make it up to you, after Rin made you fall out of the tree…” Rin bites her lip. “Rin’s doing her best! Honest! B-But if Maki-chan is still mad, maybe I’m not trying hard enough… I’m sorry.”

The guilt is contagious. It’s too late for a quarantine. Her arm is still a bit sore from the fall, but it’s just some bruising, and Rin had _definitely_ been doing her best in spite of Maki being a… jerk.

This time, it’s Maki’s turn to look guilty. She gingerly rests her bandaged hand on Rin’s leg and tries to smile, but she probably looks like she had swallowed a lime. That’s just great.

“You’re… y-you’re fine, Rin. You’re fine. It wasn’t your fault.”

Rin sniffles. “I’ll do better for you, Maki-chan.”

“I said you’re _fine_.” Awkwardly, Maki twists to completely face Rin and stiffly pats her shoulder. Oh, no, it’s still awkward. But it can’t be worse, right? So Maki falls forward in what she intended to be a hug, but she somehow instead ends up knocking Rin right off the bench and falling on her.

“Nyah—!”

“Ow—“

—

 _“I knew it_ ,” Nico mutters. All seven of them are crowded at the door, trying to get a glimpse inside. Hanayo had nearly shrieked when Maki fell over on Rin, but Honoka had slapped a hand over her mouth just in time. It’s a miracle they hadn’t been noticed yet.

“Ohhh!” Nozomi’s mouth is a perfect O. “They’re gonna do it…!”

Maki is still sprawled on top of Rin. After some sort of quiet exchange, she slams her face down against Rin’s in a strange, awkward, violent kiss. Umi takes a deep breath to scream and Honoka slaps her other hand over her mouth.

“Why are we even spying on them?!” Eli hisses, despite being at the very front of their tiny crowd. Her face is uncomfortably pressed against the glass. “They’ve obviously sorted out the problem.”

“Rin-chan is still in a vulnerable state!” Hanayo drags her hands down her face.

“It’s our duty to protect our Rin-chan,” Kotori solemnly nods in agreement.

“ _For Rin-chan_.” Hanayo clenches a fist.

—

“You didn’t have to pretend you hurt your hand,” Rin’s head is throbbing from the fall. Or maybe it’s throbbing from when Maki slammed her face against hers. “Rin would’ve been happy to help you out either way.”

“I just…” Maki groans and hides her face against Rin’s shoulder. “I didn’t know how else to go about it.”

“It’s easy! You just say: _Rin-chan, wouldn’t it be romantic if we fed our lunches to each other?_ And then Rin gets super shy and Maki-chan says something cool to help push the mood along, nya.”  

Maki has no good response to that, so she just groans again. Rin kisses the top of her head. 

—

Umi is still screaming into Honoka’s hand.


	44. secret spots

“How do you do it?” Maki asks out of nowhere, dropping a textbook on the table beside Hanayo with a loud _bang._ Hanayo jumps at the noise and nearly drops her mp3 player, and the librarian shoots a wordless glare at the two.

“Wh-what?”

“How do you do it?” She repeats in a low whisper. “Dealing with that. Her. Rin. You’ve been friends with her pretty much your whole life, right? How are you not an exhausted mess all the time.”

Ah, so that’s what it is. Hanayo pushes her glasses up on her nose and stifles a bit of laughter, even though Maki looks one hundred percent serious and one hundred percent defeated.

It’s summertime. Rin is always at the peak of her energy during the summer when there are pools to swim in and ice cream to eat and bugs to catch and beaches to run around on. It must be hell for Maki, who doesn’t have the years of experience of being attached by the hip to Rin that Hanayo has. Even the intense training regime Umi put them through isn’t enough to prepare for that whirlwind of constant movement.

Hanayo can only imagine how much more intense it must be for Maki, since they’re dating and all.

“Well?” Maki feverishly flips through the textbook without actually reading anything, just to look busy. “Don’t you have any advice to spare?”

Hanayo ponders for a moment. “Rin-chan has certain spots on her head. Here, and here.” She motions behind her ear, then to the base of her skull. “She’ll calm down if you scratch her there.”

Stuck in disbelief, Maki stops turning pages. “You’re kidding. She’s probably just taking her cat roleplaying too far.”

“No, it’s true! You should give it a try, Maki-chan.” Hanayo covers her mouth with her hand, hiding an odd smile. “Rin-chan is actually quite easy to tame when you know what she likes.”

“It’s not t- _taming!”_ Maki sputters. She abruptly stands, nearly knocking her chair over. A shush from the librarian makes her pause. She stiffly nods without looking at Hanayo. “… Okay. Never mind. Fine. Well, I’m supposed to meet her at my place, so… see you later.”

“W-wait, you forgot your textbook—“

—

They’re not getting any homework done. Or rather, _Rin_ isn’t getting any homework done, and Maki is trying her best to focus when Rin is bouncing and rolling all over the room and babbling on about some squirrel she saw in the park.

It’s getting dark and Maki’s parents won’t be home for a while. No doubt Rin’s going to get frisky and Maki’s going to cave, because she always caves when Rin acts all obnoxiously cute… in spite of that obnoxiousness.

Right on cue, Rin rolls her way right up to Maki and cheekily grins up at her, finally ending her story about that unremarkable squirrel.

“Maaaki-chan. Are you done with your homework yet?”

“Are _you?_ ”

“Nyahaha, your jokes are always funny!”

Rin straightens up and snakes over Maki’s lap, smoothly seating herself and wrapping her arms around her. That all-too familiar heat is rushing up to Maki’s face as it does every time, and Maki quivers. Rin smoothly plants a kiss on her cheek.

She waggles her eyebrows, subtle as always. “Wanna play?”

The immediate instinct is to tell her to shut up and give in anyway in true Maki fashion. But instead, Maki recalls what Hanayo had told her and grasps Rin’s head with both hands, huffing with determination.

Behind her ear, behind her head. Scratch. Was that it? Oh, right, that must be it, because Rin isn’t saying anything or squirming all over the place for once once Maki tentatively gets to work. Her eyes go wide for a moment in surprise, then her eyelids flutter as she slowly falls forward.

In fact, she goes completely limp almost immediately, slumping against Maki and nearly making her topple backwards.

Should that be worrying? Probably not. Maki huffs and continues working her fingers, marveling at how _soft_ the fine hairs are at the base of Rin’s skull. “You’re so weird, Rin.”

No response, not even a _nyaaa_ of any kind. Maki shifts into a more comfortable position and sneaks a quick sniff of Rin’s hair, unable to resist. The sweetness of her shampoo is faint. There’s also traces of chlorine and salt, and the comforting Rin-like scent of Rin beneath. She half-expects Rin to suddenly perk up and laugh at her for being totally indiscreet about smelling her, but still nothing.

And nothing.

Just to make sure, Maki tilts her ear closer to Rin’s face and listens for her breathing. Oh, there it is. Okay.

“Did you seriously fall asleep?” Maki loudly whispers. Her fingers dance across Rin’s scalp, one hand cupping the back of her head and the other always returning to that one spot behind her ear. Incredible. Rin really did fall asleep, all the span of a few long seconds. Unsure what else to do at this point, Maki carefully lies down right there on the floor, Rin sprawled on top and completely unconscious. 

It isn’t as though she hasn’t seen Rin asleep before, but this is… different, somehow. Maki smiles to herself and rests her cheek against Rin’s hair. Soft. So soft. A nap wouldn’t hurt, probably, and she slowly continues to gently scratch Rin’s head until she dozes off as well.

Maki wakes up at 6 am with the realization that she had completely forgotten to finish her homework.

—

“I used to do it a lot when we were little kids. Rin-chan really hated naptime,” Hanayo giggles. “Isn’t it incredible?”

“Incredible is one way to put it…” Maki grumbles. The morning wasn’t anything particularly special; Rin had bounced up and bounced around like normal, as if she had completely forgotten about the events of the night before. In the end, Maki still felt exhausted _and_ she had to force Rin to sit and hastily finish the homework with her before they left for school.

“Rin-chan is really such a sensitive girl.” They can hear Rin and Honoka snickering somewhere among the shelves, probably looking through anatomy textbooks like a pair of twelve year olds. “You’d be surprised.”

“I really am,” Maki says, deadpan. She raises an eyebrow and glances at Hanayo a bit more suspiciously than intended. “Then does she have… other spots?”

Hanayo’s face flushes and she turns the other way. Maki swears she can see her glasses fogging up. “U-um, well, y-you see—“

“Never mind,” she quickly interrupts her, coughing. “I’ll figure it out… myself…”

They mutually decide to stop talking and return to their textbooks. Rin and Honoka are still snorting with poorly hidden laughter over whatever they’re looking at.


	45. dance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> more elirin (and/or nozorineli?!) than rinmaki but ayy

“You sound serious about it.”

“That’s because I _am_ serious!” Rin says, enunciating with a pout. Eli hides a smile behind her hand and decides that all this paperwork can wait a little longer, because she obviously can’t say no to an argument like that.

Well, it was a bit more like a plea than an argument, but she would have agreed to help Rin out either way.

“Does Maki know you’re trying to learn?” Eli rummages in her bag for her phone.

Rin fidgets. “No… I wanna surprise her.”

That’s cute. That’s also a bit unnecessary, Eli thinks, but what does she know? She can still remember the look on Nozomi’s face when she presented her with school supplies as a gift, thinking it was such a great idea. Nozomi’s laughter from that day still haunts her.

“Maki-chan’s cousin’s wedding is this weekend so I’ve gotta learn everything by then, nya!” Rin says. “Maki-chan said, _act natural and don’t be weird_. Her whole family’s gonna banish Rin if she can’t blend in!!”

Somehow, Eli doubts that would happen, but at least Rin set a goal for herself. She selects a slow instrumental song on her phone and stands, motioning Rin over. “Of course, Rin. Here, we’ll start with some easy slow dancing.”

Rin suddenly seems to lose all her bravado at the mention of slow dancing and reluctantly shuffles over, averting her gaze. Trying to be encouraging, Eli takes the initiative and gently squeezes one of Rin’s hands. She vaguely remembers being taught by an aunt when she was much younger, in a similar fashion.

“Put your hands on my shoulders. Ah, and try not to stare at your feet the whole time.”

“Then where am I supposed to look?” Rin nervously gulps, her palms as light as quivering feathers on Eli’s shoulders.

“If it makes things easier, pretend I’m Maki.”

“… N-no, that makes it worse!” She vigorously shakes her head. They’re standing so _close_ together that Rin can almost feel Eli’s breath on her hair, like how she can definitely feel her hands on her waist. Maki obviously wouldn’t be this bold about physical contact, especially not at a large venue with her extended family. Oh, god, what was she thinking asking Eli to teach her this kind of—

“Hey, just relax. Follow my steps.” Eli’s practically hugging Rin with how close she’s holding her.

Slowly but surely, Rin eases up and her hands stop shaking, and she stops accidentally kicking Eli’s ankles. The music guides her into a simple rhythm that nearly makes her sleepy. This is actually… kind of nice. Not nearly as fun as the high-energy constant-movement kind of dancing she prefers, but still. She shyly leans against Eli.

Unbeknownst to them, Nozomi is standing in the doorway with feigned hurt and disappointment in her sigh. “ _Elicchi_. You’ve never taken _me_ out dancing before.”

“N-Nozomi!” Eli startles, her hands flying off of Rin’s waist. Likewise, Rin releases Eli’s shoulders and takes a hasty step back. “How long have you been watching us—?!”

“It was Eli-chan’s idea!!”

“ _Rin!_ ”

“Oh, I wouldn’t doubt it. I always had a suspicion that she’s into younger, cuter girls,” Nozomi says with a completely straight face and a wink. She turns to Eli, whose face is steaming. “Though let me have a turn with Rin-chan too next time, ‘kay?”

—

“I… don’t know why, but I suddenly feel like I need to fight Eli and Nozomi,” Maki says out loud, bewildered.

Nico shrugs. “That’s how I feel all the time.”


	46. 83

As always, it begins with a loud “Maki-chan!!” and Rin hurtling straight for her target like a comet on a crash course. Maki casually sidesteps away from Rin’s attempted strangle-hug at the last second.

“Yeah? What is it?”

Undeterred by her armful of empty air, Rin springs upright and shoves a paper at Maki’s face. “Rin did it, nya!! I got… an 83!!”

Maki can’t hold back a smile even though she personally would never dare get a score as low as that. Rin looks so damn excited— her test paper is already crumpled and frayed with how roughly she had been handling it in her rush to show all her friends.

“Nice job, Rin.”

“So, so! I get my reward now, right!” Rin carelessly crunches the paper into her bag and leans forward. Caught off guard by the sudden reminder, Maki freezes up, then sighs.

“R-right… I did say I would if you did better than your last test, didn’t I?”

“You did, Maki-chan, you did!”

Well. Fine. Whatever. Rin does deserve it for studying her ass off to get something better than her usual mediocrity. So without further ado, Maki quickly pecks Rin on the lips after discreetly making sure no one else around is watching.

The effect is instantaneous; Rin fidgets and sways, giggling madly to herself. Trying to play it cool and hide her own blush, Maki crosses her arms and stares down at her shoes.  

“O-kay!” Rin bounces on her heels, her eyes practically blazing with determination. “Next time I’ll get a 90, and then you can give me a dozen more kisses!”

“Why are my kisses your only motivation?!”

The odds of Rin getting anything close to an A are slimmer than Nico’s twiggy legs, but apparently anything is possible when kisses are involved. Gross. 


	47. vidya gaem

“I think the sequel isn’t really as good as the first game plot-wise, but the graphics are a lot better. Plus they improved the gameplay so some moves aren’t as hard to do, nya.”

Maki _kinda really_ doesn’t care much about the video game Rin is currently engrossed with, but she doesn’t say so. Those sorts of things never really interested her, plus her father would never let her fall into the trap of such a brain-draining distraction from her schoolwork, but she’s here with _Rin_ and that’s good enough.

Though for once, Rin’s attention isn’t focused on Maki. It bugs Maki more than it should and she nudges up against Rin’s shoulder with a little huff.

“Nyaha! I finally beat level eight!”

“Rin.”

“Huh? Do you wanna play too, Maki-chan?”

“What? No, of course not.”

To Maki’s horror, Rin just shrugs and looks back to the TV. No way. No. This isn’t how it’s supposed to go. Rin is supposed to be giggling and pawing and pestering Maki for affection like she always does both in public and private, so that Maki can act annoyed and make Rin work harder for some reciprocation. Maki makes a disgruntled noise under her breath and swats at Rin’s arm.

“Hey, don’t do that, you’ll mess me up…” Rin absentmindedly twists away without turning her head, which only pisses off Maki even more. Like hell she’s losing to some stupid video game.

While Rin is more inclined to use less subtle tactics like sudden tackling, Maki slowly and demurely drapes herself over Rin, firmly wrapping her arms around her waist and pushing her over without so much as a warning. Rin frantically tries to salvage whatever she’d been doing, but GAME OVER inevitably flashes on the screen and Maki pulls the controller away. She tosses it aside.

“Maki-chan, you made me lose!”

“Well, that’s too bad,” she hisses into Rin’s ear, nibbling it for good measure. She pins Rin’s wrists down when she tries to grab for the controller; Rin shivers, a rare blush spreading to her ears.

“Y-you’re being really bold tonight…!”

Maki quietly snarls and presses her mouth against Rin’s neck, feeling the other girl’s racing pulse against her lips. She’s warming up fast and the momentum can’t be stopped now. Rin knows that too.

“Guess what?” she whispers, and Rin trembles in anticipation.

“Whha-at?”

“I’m going to sell your console and games tomorrow.”

“Nya?! Nooooo—!!”


	48. five hundred million

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> from a request for angsty rinmaki

Rin knows what’s coming, she knew it for a long time now, but she covered it all up with blind optimism and her usual cheer. Instead of looking at what was before her, she chose to keep watching the stars as if they’d change. But they never change. The stars are always exactly where they are, and it’s just their tiny tiny planet that moves around the universe.

“I have to think realistically about it,” Maki slowly says, as if to make sure each and every word thoroughly pierces Rin. “I have to think about my future.”

“I know that,” Rin weakly says.

Realistically, what they have now would never be anything more than a fleeting high school romance. They’ll be graduating soon and those days will be left behind them. They all have futures they need to think about.

Rin just can’t help being trapped in the present, that’s all.

“Remember when you kept asking me to marry you, when we were first years?” Maki looks down at their intertwined fingers. Five hundred million stars smile down at them and Rin smiles back, trying to pretend like this is just like any other evening of stargazing. Her chest feels painfully tight.

“But maybe, by the time we’re older—“

“I can’t just wait and hope and risk everything for _you_ , Rin. Papa will never see things differently. A lot of people will never see things differently.”

Maki has a future of success and a medical career and a hospital to inherit, and Rin only has vaguely formed dreams and ideas. They’ll be _graduating_ and they can’t keep living in this dream forever, and Maki can’t lose everything just because she loves the wrong person.

Rin knows. She already knew.

Slowly, slowly, she pulls her hand away from Maki’s to wipe at her wet eyes, still smiling bitterly at those five hundred million stars. Growing up really is a terrible thing. Why do they always have to look at things _realistically_ with facts and logic and laws? Why can’t they just _be?_

“Rin…” She reaches out, unsure, and lets her shoulders sag with the weight of their finale.

“We can still be friends.”

Just friends. “… Yeah.” Only ever friends.

Rin doesn’t pull away when Maki hesitantly reaches for her hand again. They stay there for a while longer, watching the stars together just like they always do.


	49. anemone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> from a request for a rinmaki pic from Dengeki G's

_“Positive reinforcement is key. You want to reward her for her correct answers, rather than punishing her for her mistakes.”_

That was what Umi had said, but now Maki is beginning to have doubts. What did she think Maki was asking, how to train a dog? Though that might not be far off the mark. Tutoring Rin in English is about as difficult as teaching a puppy how to drive a car. 

Not that she’d ever teach a puppy how to drive a car. That would just be reckless.

“And then… um… this word here…” Rin’s tongue is slightly sticking out of the corner of her mouth as she concentrates. Maki finds herself staring at it a little longer than necessary, tapping her fingers against the table as she waits for Rin to figure it out.

“Oh!! _Amemone. Amenome. A… Anenome.”_ No dice. Her brows furrow as she works the jumbled syllables in her mouth. 

“Close…” Maki says, trying to be somewhat encouraging. 

“ _Anemoneme!!!”_

… Close enough. Umi’s advice echoes in her head again and Maki falters for a moment, looking at Rin’s proud smile. Well, it couldn’t hurt. She holds up a hand, palm facing Rin, offering a weak smile. 

“Good job, Rin. _Anemone_.”

“Yeah!!” Rin, pleased as punch, enthusiastically connects the high-five with a loud clap and scribbles down the word in sloppy scratchy handwriting. “Anenemome! This is easier than I thought, nya!” 

Maki covers her mouth and looks away, clumsily choking back some laughter.


	50. sweet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 50th chapter yaayyy

Rin knows better than to make a fuss when Maki decides to invade her personal space, in the same way she wouldn’t dare startle a stray cat if it decided to rub against her leg. The comparison tickles her and she holds her breath as Maki casually flops right on top of her back, the mattress beneath her slightly bouncing from the impact. All of Rin’s breath escapes in one quiet _whoosh_.

“Maki-chan, are you wearing one of my shirts again?” Rin tries to look over her shoulder without disturbing Maki’s position, but for now she’s pinned belly-down. How exciting.

“Yours make better pajamas,” she simply says. Maki’s hair is still dripping from her shower; Rin can feel droplets seeping through her shirt, and then more when Maki moves around a bit to put her face closer to Rin’s head. Then, unexpectedly but so nonchalantly, she presses her nose against Rin’s hair and grabs a loose fistful.

Rin scrunches her eyes shut and giggles. She can feel Maki’s breath on her scalp, and more drops of water falling on her, and Maki sharply mumbles something at her. Something about keeping still? That sounds about right. Her knee digs into the back of Rin’s leg.

“Ow!”

The exclamation goes ignored. “You used the new conditioner I bought for you?”

“Yep! And I kept it in for _three minutes_ before rinsing. I counted!”

“Good. It smells nice.” Maki runs both of her hands over and through Rin’s hair now, still completely fixated on sniffing her.  The scent is sweet, but warm, like something fruity with splashes of milk to soften the acidity. It’s almost overwhelming. Rin probably used too much, this goof.

Beneath the conditioner, she finds the smell of _Rin_ , and Maki smiles to herself.

“You smell nice too, Maki-chan!”

She pulls on a generous fistful of hair, as if offended by the remark. Maki still has her face pressed against Rin’s head, though. “Don’t say weird things.”

Her hypocrisy is cute enough that Rin decides not to point it out. 


	51. homework (take 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> i just realized this is p much the same as the first chapter whoops

Morning. Still some time before class starts. Rin is frantically trying to see if any of her peers will let her copy from their math workbook. _As usual_. From her desk, Maki watches, her chin neatly cradled in her palm as she carefully observes. If anyone was looking at her, they might have seen her lips quirk up into a smile just for a split second.

“Hey, Rin?” Maki stands up, and the girl Rin is currently leaning over lets out a breath of relief as Rin’s attention is diverted elsewhere.

“Maki-chan! You’re here to rescue Rin, right?! Lemme copy your homework!!”

“No, that’s not it. We have a quiz today, covering last week’s chapter. Just thought you’d like to know, since you weren’t paying attention yesterday.”

Hanayo takes a deep breath like she’s about to blurt out something, but whatever she’s about to say never makes it out. It takes Rin about three seconds to process that information before she’s a whirlwind of panic, practically falling over desks as she babbles at anyone within vicinity to let her see their notes (and maybe copy their homework too if they’d be so kind).

“Nooo! No no no no!! I’m not prepared at all for thiiiis—!” Rin cries out, whirling around to finally face Maki with a silent plea of desperation. “Maki-chan…!”

“Calm down. I was just kidding.”

“Nyaaa?!”

“Yeah. That should teach you to pay more attention in class,” Maki coldly turns her nose away and sits down, pretending to busy herself with flipping through a notebook. “Serves you right, Rin.”

“You’re so mean…!” Utterly defeated, Rin sniffles and drags her feet back to her own desk. From her vantage point, Maki can see Rin’s shoulders heave in apparent despair and relief, despair from being completely fooled like that, and relief from knowing Maki was lying. How awful. Even some of their classmates are wincing in sympathy.

“Wasn’t that a bit… cruel?” Hanayo whispers, and Maki shrugs with a carefully-maintained blank expression.

“Not at all.”

No one needs to know that Maki lied about the quiz just because she thinks Rin is extra cute when she panics. Her defeated face isn’t half bad, either. Yes, certainly, no one needs to know. Absolutely no one. Once Hanayo isn’t looking her way, Maki smiles to herself and realizes she’d been holding her notebook upside-down.


	52. nails

Maki never really noticed it before, but Rin tends to chew on her nails quite often when she’s idle. In fact, she’s doing it right now while they’re quietly studying (or “studying” in Rin’s case), and Maki finally decides to do something about that… problem. Is it a problem? She can’t tell, but it’s also just a gross habit and needs to end.

“Are your fingers even clean?” she disdainfully asks, reaching to take hold of Rin’s wrist and pull her hand away from her mouth. Rin’s eyelids flutter in surprise and she tilts her head at Maki, her hand going limp.

“I dunno. But it’s fine, nya, Rin always does this!”

“What– _why?_ That’s gross, Rin.”

“Nuh uh! Rin’s no good with using nail clippers, so this is how I keep my nails nice and short. That’s really clever, right? Call me clever, Maki-chan!”

Ah, no, now she’s scooting over and getting into Maki’s personal space. Maki simply presses her palm against Rin’s forehead to keep her at bay while maintaining a secure hold on her wrist, in order to examine her nails more closely. They really are chewed up, jeez. And some dirt is trapped underneath most of them. Rin whines and only tries to rub up closer, still prattling on about how she wants Maki to praise her.

But not today. Not with these gross nails.

“Ugh, these are awful! Don’t you feel ashamed, chewing on your nails like some little kid?”

“Praiiiise meeeeee!”

“Why would I?!” She finally lets go of Rin’s wrist and reluctantly allows her to cuddle up, all their studying pretty much forgotten now. Maki pats her head with an exasperated sigh, eyes rolling high up just for the sake of rolling her eyes. Honestly, she’d been getting tired of all this reading as well.

“I’m taking you for a manicure this weekend,” Maki says, rubbing Rin’s hair more affectionately than intended. “I know a good place. You’ll like it, I’m sure.”

“Really?!” Rin perks up and smiles so brightly that Maki has to avert her gaze with an unsubtle blush. “I’ve always wanted to try one of those! You’re the best, Maki-chan! I love youuuu!!”

“Y-yeah, I know that. … I love you too.”

“Nyahaha! Maki-chan’s still super shy!”

“Be quiet! We’re supposed to be studying!”


	53. siberian cats

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> from a request for something about Rin being allergic to cats

Not to brag or anything, but Maki would consider herself to be a _pretty smart_ person. Add a comma and she’d be a _pretty, smart_ person. Which is… smart. Of course. But that sounds too much like how Nico would gloat, so maybe scratch that part out.

Anyway, why is she so smart? Because Maki just came up with the most brilliant idea for a birthday gift for Rin, one she’s sure no one, not even Hanayo or Rin’s family, ever thought of. She’s so proud of what she came up with that she can’t stop smiling all the way to Rin’s place and she probably looks like a weirdo to passerby, but the look on Rin’s face is gonna be _worth it._

“Hello—“ Umi opens the door almost immediately after the first knock. Her greeting is cut short when she notices what Maki is carrying with her. Like a concerned parent, her brows are furrowing and she looks like she needs to say something, but can’t figure out how to word it.

Well, whatever. Maki wouldn’t expect anything different from Umi.

“Well? Can I come in or not?” Maki impatiently taps a foot.

“What… did you bring for Rin?”

“You’re not blind, Umi.” She rolls her eyes and holds up the carrier. The kitten within loudly squeaks and butts its nose up against the grate. “It’s hypoallergenic. I did my research, so you don’t have to be so shocked.”

But Umi acts as though she didn’t hear that last part. “Oh no, ohhh no…” She steps aside and briskly marches back into the house, allowing Maki entrance. Or, at least, that’s what she’s assuming is going on. She can hear voices and laughter coming from down the hall in the kitchen. The kitten squeaks again.

The voices quiet down when Maki enters. Everyone but Nico is already here, cramped around a small table. On the table are wrapped gifts for Rin, most of the givers identifiable by the wrapping paper alone, but the one that stands out the most is…

“Maki-chan!!” Rin, silly party hat and all, leaps up and frantically zips around her like some sort of comet, unable to contain her excitement in her tiny body. “Is that— a kitten?! Maki-chan got Rin a kitten!!! Nyaaaaa—“

“H-hold on a minute!” Maki, too busy staring at what everyone is crowded around to remember to relish the look on Rin’s face, hugs the carrier close to her body. “Why is a cat already there?! _I_ brought a cat!”

Indeed, another kitten is toddling around the gifts, scratching at wrapping paper and basking in the attention it had been receiving. The kitten inside Maki’s carrier squeaks yet again.

“Oh…” Eli stands up a bit too quickly. “… Well.”

“Eli?!”

“Now Rin has two kitties!!” Rin gleefully spins around and promptly crashes into a wall. Kotori and Hanayo rush over. Eli fidgets as if she’s being interrogated.

“My aunt, you see, recently— her cat had kittens and I thought, since Siberians are hypoallergenic—“

“But that was _my_ idea!” Maki can’t help but stomp her foot like some sort of petulant child. It’s even the same breed? Go figure.

“Don’t be silly. You can’t patent an idea like that,” Umi folds her arms, frowning. “I didn’t even approve of the first cat, and yet you…”

Honoka wrangles Umi back down to her seat. “Ahaha, lighten up! It’s not like you’re Rin-chan’s mom!”

Rin is down on the floor, dazed but still giddy. For a split moment Maki wonders why Nico is even later than her, but she decides that doesn’t really matter right now. Eli and Umi are trying to talk over each other while Honoka had already gone back to playing with the cat Eli apparently brought over. Maki looks down at the cat carrier, then at Rin, then at Eli, mouth still hanging slack in disbelief.

So much for an originally brilliant idea. Maybe that _Cute_ and _Clever_ in Eli’s nickname actually means something.

It does sound catchier than _Pretty_ and _Smart_ , anyways.

“Bring my kitties to meeee!” Rin commands, still on the floor. Honoka immediately obliges and scoops up the kitten from the table and plops it down on Rin’s chest. Everyone’s eyes turn to Maki almost at once, including the cat’s.

Eli offers a lopsided smile and a shrug, probably some sort of peace offering that was never really necessary in the first place. “It’s all for Rin in the end, isn’t it?”

“Y-yeah… I guess.” Damn. She can’t argue with that logic. So she opens the carrier and carefully places the kitten on the floor beside Rin, where it immediately leaps at its fellow feline to play. The actual feline, that is, not Rin.

“Ahhh, stay there! Wait! I need to take pictures!” Hanayo breaks the awkward silence and rushes somewhere to grab a camera. Just like that, the easygoing atmosphere is back and Maki feels a little less egotistic and a little more pleased with how happy Rin is. It _is_ all for Rin, isn’t it? The two kittens are tumbling on her stomach now, shaken around by Rin’s uncontrollable giggling.

And then Nico bursts in with a rather sour-faced cat cradled in her arms. “Oi, Rin, check out what the great Nico-Nii got for you!”


	54. sleepover

Tonight’s a special night, not like Christmas kind of special or even fancy dinner special— It’s Maki Nishikino’s first official two-person sleepover. _Official_ is a word she’s willing to use lightly just for this occasion, because in spite of all her played indifference she’s nearly spilling over on the inside from the nervous excitement.

If anything, she can just blame Rin for pestering her and pestering her until Maki gave in.

“Maki-chan!!” Rin is already wearing her pajamas when she greets her at the door. “You’re finally here!”

“Hey… Rin.”

Was she supposed to arrive in her pajamas as well? Maki looks down at her clothes, then at Rin’s pawprint-patterned pjs, and decides that it’s not worth questioning.

So what if she has no idea how these kinds of sleepovers are normally supposed to go? All those dumb traditions and unsaid rules can’t possibly be that hard to figure out on her own. Worst case scenario, Maki makes a fool out of herself and Rin teases her for the next two months.

“Get in here!” Rin practically bounces against the walls. “We’re gonna have so much fun!! We can watch a movie, and eat lots of candy, and have a pillowfight, and build a pillow fort, and eat more candy—“

Maki glances behind her. Her mother gives her one cheerful wave before driving away, apparently blind to the baffled and somewhat pleading stare Maki had given her. Maybe this was a bad idea. Maybe it was— oh, ok, Rin is dragging her inside now.

“Hold up!”

“Nya?”

Aren’t we supposed to… you know, sleep?”

Rin tilts her head and looks at her for a long, uncomfortable moment, making Maki fidget and hug her bag close to her chest. Then she bursts out with a short bark of laughter and clasps Maki’s shoulders. “That part comes last, silly! A sleepover isn’t just about _sleeping_!”

“I- I already know that! I was trying to make a _joke_.”

“By the way, where’s your sleeping bag?” Rin is already poking her face into Maki’s bag, sticking her hands in. Maki yanks it away and furrows her brows, slightly turning away. 

“I thought I didn’t need one. And don’t look through my stuff!”

That must be strike two. But this time Rin doesn’t laugh, she just beams and resumes pulling Maki to her bedroom. “That’s true! We can just share Rin’s bed, nya!”

“Wait— what?!”

—

She handles the movie and the pillow fort and the candy binging with as much grace as an awkward fifteen year old girl can, and even lets Rin smack her a couple times with a pillow in good humor. The atmosphere isn’t nearly as chaotic as the time everyone stayed in her vacation home, but since it’s _Rin_ there’s not much less energy in the air. In fact, maybe there’s even more. Somehow.

“Maki-chan, Maki-chan!” Rin rolls around on the floor among popcorn crumbs and candy wrappers. “Are you tired yet?! Because Rin isn’t tired! At! All! Nya!!”

“That’s because you had too much sugar,” Maki helpfully points out. Well, that’ll just mean Rin will crash eventually, so it’s just a matter of waiting now. “We should go to sleep soon.”

“Come ooon! Bedtimes suck!!” Rin rolls and rolls until she hits her head against the leg of her chair, careless as always. “Ow!”

“See? That’s what you get.”

Rin pouts for a moment, considering her options and considering Maki in a rare moment of thoughtfulness. But then her eyes are blazing with that sugar fuel and and she crawls over, draping herself over her. Automatically, Maki protests and squirms beneath Rin’s weight.

“Fine! Then let’s go to bed!” It _is_ past midnight already, and Rin’s sugar high had already hit its peak. “But before that, we gotta pick stuffed animals.”

“… Huh?” Maki stops struggling. “Stuffed animals?”

“Yeah! Over here!” Rin detaches herself and jumps up to her feet, yanking Maki along with her. She pulls her along to a shelf in the corner of her room that’s covered with plush toys, most of them cats. “It’s something me and Kayo-chin also do every time she stays over. We each pick one to sleep with! I’ll introduce all of them to you so you can pick too, okay? This is Whiskers, and this is Tubby, and this is Mr. Fuzzyface, and this is…”

There’s far too many to really care but Maki finds herself oddly enthralled, carefully memorizing each toy’s name and the way Rin describes each one as their own unique individual. What a… cute ritual. Yes, cute is the only word to describe something like this, which means it’s totally fitting for someone like Rin. Ah, she can feel her face heating up from those thoughts.

“I want this one,” Maki snatches up an orange cat, appropriately and uncreatively called Oranges. So sue her, it’s cute.

“—No! That’s _my_ favorite!”

It’s a stand-off for about four seconds before Rin loses the staring (glaring) contest and backs off with a distraught _nya_. “You can’t, Maki-chan…!”

“To the victor goes the spoils.”

With that bit of wisdom, Maki grabs as many stuffed animals as she can hold in her arms and moves past Rin to gather a pile on the bed.

“Nooo! That’s against the rules!”

“Too late. I’ve claimed my prize.”

She turns her back so that Rin doesn’t see the smirk on her face, climbing beneath the covers amidst a sea of plush toys. Maki doesn’t move when the lights turn off, nor when she feels the mattress shift with the addition of Rin, nor when Rin cuddles up against her back.

Then Maki realizes she’s just horribly, horribly embarrassed and had only somehow convinced herself she wasn’t up until now.

“… But this means you’re having lots of fun, right?” Rin whispers in the dark, kept at bay by a line of stuffed animals diligently guarding Maki’s personal bubble. “I know Maki-chan’s never had a sleepover like this before, so Rin wanted to make sure you had an extra good time!”

“Your breath stinks. Why didn’t you brush your teeth?” Maki whispers back.

“Hehe, I knew it!”

“What?”

“You _are_ having a good time.” Rin’s arms encircle her and Maki tenses, but decides it’s ok just for this one time. Just this once. She’s too tired to argue back, anyway.

She stubbornly clings to Oranges and swats Rin’s hand away when she tries to reach for the toy.


	55. stray cats

Along the walk home from school, Rin pauses at a narrow alley leading between two houses with an air of purpose and crouches down right there in the middle of the sidewalk, facing it. Of course, Maki is forced to stop as well. She nudges Rin with the toe of her shoe.

“What are you doing?”

“Shhh!” Rin holds a finger to her lips at Maki, then nods at the alley. Puzzled, Maki decides it’d be easier to crouch beside Rin and do as she says and wait for the mystery to solve itself.

Though it’s not _really_ a mystery when she thinks about it. Maki wryly smiles. “You know you’re allergic, right?”

“Yeah, but! These ones are really, reaaally cute!” Rin says, digging in her bag and pulling out a handful of tiny, crumbly cookies from the very bottom. Then Maki realizes those aren’t cookies.

“Gross, did you keep those in there all day?”

“What’s your point, nya?”

“Forget about it.”

She watches, transfixed, as two scruffy-looking cats emerge from the alley and pad right up to Rin to eat the treats from her palm. Rin must’ve been doing this for a while if they seem so comfortable with her. She softly coos at them and pats each one on the head, running her fingers down their backs. Maki can tell she’s trying to hold as still as possible too, knees and lips quivering with excitement, everything in her eyes shining. One of the cats chirps and makes little smacking noises.

“Rin,” Maki sighs, though she’s wearing a fond smile. Luckily, she came prepared for a situation like this; Maki rummages in her bag for a hospital mask and carefully fits it over Rin before she can start sneezing and potentially scare the cats away.

Not that Maki would care one way or the other if the cats did leave. They look so… dirty. And maybe just a little cute, when they’re noisily chewing on the cat treats Rin brought for them.

“Do you wanna try feeding them too, Maki-chan? I have more in my bag!” Rin loudly whispers.

Maki considers telling Rin that they should keep going if they want to get home before the sun completely sets, but it probably wouldn’t hurt to stay here a little longer.


	56. bad dream

Sometime around who-even-knows o’clock, Rin kicks Maki awake. Unintentionally, of course, because she’s still fast asleep, but now Maki is left with a twinge of half-conscious annoyance and the groggy thought of rolling Rin off the bed in retaliation. Two can play at that game. Or something. Come to think of it, maybe it was her elbow and not her foot? She’s not focused enough to figure it out.

Maki props herself up on one arm and squints through the dark at the lump beneath the blanket beside her.

“Hey. Rin,” she murmurs, lifting the blanket to peer. “You _kicked_ me.”

Rin is curled up into a tight little ball, quivering, her back turned to Maki. Her position leaves her oddly vulnerable and exposed as much as it suggests a desperate defense… though it’s not the right time to be trying to make sense of things like that.

 _“Rin_ ,” Maki says again with a bit more insistence. Rin whimpers in her sleep and right then, Maki finally realizes she’s likely having a bad dream.

It’s not a terribly uncommon occurrence, which is a little unexpected for someone so cheerful and carefree during the day. But Maki knows that come morning, Rin will blithely prattle on about her nightmare like it was a just a cheesy horror movie and forget all about it by that evening.

But still. She scoots over to join Rin beneath the blanket and presses up against her back, tightly hugging her until she stops twitching in her sleep. Rin softly exhales and finally relaxes, slightly uncurling herself, but Maki keeps her in a loose embrace.

“What was it this time, the one about the dogs chasing you?” Maki sleepily whispers into Rin’s ear before drifting back to sleep.


	57. spooning

This evening, when Rin sleepily crawls into bed after Maki had already gone to sleep, she wraps around her from behind rather than worming her way in for a hug at the front like she usually does.

What a discrepancy. Maki almost immediately awakens with a low grumble, twisting and squirming in Rin’s hold. It’s not _uncomfortable_ , far from it actually, but. 

“Hey. What’re you doing.”

“I wanna be the big spoon this time…” Rin lets loose a generous yawn right into Maki’s ear, hugging her tighter.

“No…?” Maki, eyes bleary and back too warm, somehow manages to yank herself free and immediately turns to try and flip Rin over. “You’re shorter, so obviously _you’re_ the little spoon.”

But now Rin’s putting up a fight of her own. They can’t see much in the dark like this and the blanket and pillows keep getting in the way, and Maki thinks she might’ve poked Rin’s eye by accident just now. Rin blindly grabs at Maki’s face and shoulders with rough pawing motions.

“But you’re always the big spoon, Maki-chan! It’s Rin’s turn!”

The easy solution would be to give in and go back to sleep, but not even a half-awake daze is going to make Maki back off from this, no matter how silly or inconsequential it is. She yelps when she somehow manages to shove a couple fingers into Rin’s mouth (Rin, of course, bites down).

“Ow-! I’m not— Rin, stop struggling!”

“Are you just embarrassed about being the little spoon?! Think about how Rin feels!”

“N-No! Cut it out!” Oh, she’s definitely wide awake now. Maki growls and manages to jam a knee into Rin’s thigh, and Rin’s body jerks up and— amazingly enough, their foreheads smash together with a dull sort of _thonk_.

Rin falls back, Maki falls back, and one of their pillows falls to the floor unnoticed.

Neither of them move for a long, long period of silence. Rin is the first to recover; she pulls herself over to Maki and flops over across her belly, perpendicular, with a loud resigned sigh that’s met with a displeased grunt. Nothing else is said. Nothing else needs to be said. They both fall asleep like that, and Maki supposes this is fine too.


	58. studying

It’s difficult to ignore Rin even when she’s doing nothing, which is a rare occurrence on its own so maybe that’s exactly _why_ it’s hard not to notice. But this time she is doing something. Sort of. She’s carrying a heavy stack of textbooks, each one intimidatingly bare of any pictures on the covers and solid square font printed on the spines.

Maki does notice this, and she discreetly observes as Rin deposits the stack of books at the adjacent table and sits down. A bead of sweat rolls down her temple, and Maki is so busy tracing its progress down her neck that she doesn’t see Rin glancing in her direction until a moment later.

Of course she looks away. She’s supposed to be studying, jeez.

“I thought you were studying,” Umi says in a low voice, completely redundant to Maki’s thoughts.

She noticed too, then.

“I _am_.” Maki defensively lowers her head and pretends to scan the pages open in front of her. But her eyes wander to the side, and back to Rin, who’s now fervently reading through one of the books from that heavy stack.

Umi shakes her head and sets her pen down. “You two are ridiculous.”

“What? We’re— I’m not doing anything.”

“You’re watching Rin, while Rin is trying to impress you.” Umi says too matter-of-factly, though her expression gives away her awkward reaction to that observation.

“What are you talking about…” But it’s easy to piece it together when Umi points it out. Rin? In the school library? _Reading?_ There’s a better chance of spotting Nozomi in a vegan restaurant, and yet there she is.

Oh. _Oh_. Rin is trying to impress Maki by pretending she can actually study those heavy textbooks, huh? Maki’s cheeks flush and she quickly hides her smile behind her hand. That’s… cute. And dumb. Rin is dumb. She’s already dozing off over the book, head bobbing and eyelids fluttering. Maki wonders if she should move over to poke her awake before she falls face-first and drools all over the pages.

“I wish Honoka would at least try to pretend she can study, too,” Umi sighs.


	59. autumn

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is the most recent rinmaki i wrote, sweats

With the change of seasons comes a change in colors. Rin races ahead further down the path, leaves flying in her wake and her arms stretched out as if she could fly. She calls something over her shoulder, unintelligible in her excitement. Maki shakes her head and takes her time with catching up. The gesture is more fond than exasperated these days.

“Maki-chan!” Rin spins around, arms still outstretched. It’s almost dizzying. “The trees look like the sunset! Isn’t it incredible?!”

It’s just _fall_ , but Rin somehow managed to say something strangely poetic in her simplistic observations so Maki holds her tongue, only nods and half-shrugs. The weather is getting chilly now that summer is out of the way. She’d neglected to bring a coat with her today, as did Rin, but Rin seems unbothered by the goosebumps rising on her arms.

“Slow down, Rin. You’d better not be like this for the whole season.”

Rin ignores her and abruptly drops down to her knees, shuffling along and sifting through fallen leaves in the dirt like she’s searching for something. “Hold on…”

“You’re getting your pants dirty.”

“It’s fine, it’ll wash out!”

“Seriously, what are you doing?”

Like a taut spring, Rin pops back up to her feet and thrusts a leaf at Maki.

“Look, Maki-chan! This one matches your hair perfectly!” Since Maki clearly won’t accept the leaf, Rin holds it up beside her head for a better comparison. Maki grabs her wrist to see for herself. Huh. It’s just about the same exact hue of red.

Her mouth is twitching with a poorly concealed smile in spite of herself. “What’s the big deal? It’s just a leaf, Rin.” Ah, hell, but she quickly scans the ground and bends down to snatch up an orange leaf, shoving it at Rin in delayed retaliation. “This one matches _yours_.”

Rin’s eyebrows arch up in surprise for a moment, and then she’s bursting out with pleased laughter. It’s contagious; Maki’s giggling as well and she shoves the leaf into Rin’s warm palm, but that only gives Rin an opportunity to grasp her hand and link their arms together. The two leaves fall from their grips and flutter to the ground, already forgotten.

“You like autumn too, huh!”

“It’s alright, I guess.”

Rin just makes everything fun, that’s all.


	60. pocky day

“Hey, Rin.” Maki speaks up only after Hanayo waves goodbye and takes the left at the intersection, heart beating faster than necessary. It’s just the two of them now, her and Rin. _Now is the time_. Maki’s been waiting for this day and this opportunity with increasing nervous excitement.

The eleventh of November shall be a day to remember. Or something.

“What’s up, Maki-chan!”

“Do you— d-do you wanna…” Weakly, she shoves a hand into her bag and fumbles for the slightly crushed box buried between books. It’s been sitting there all day like a ticking time bomb. She clears her throat. “It’s the eleventh today, you know.”

“Yep! Nine days after my birthday!”

“… Ten days, Rin. Ten.”

“N-nya, you know I’m bad at math.”

Sometimes Maki has to wonder, is Rin even for real? She pulls the box of pocky out and shoves it at Rin’s chest, jaw set tight and heart still running awry. It doesn’t occur to her that she should probably explain, first. “I forgot to share these with the others at practice, but we can still have them. Let’s share.”

Rin looks down at the pocky with her eyebrows raised. She laughs, and for a split second Maki’s afraid that she’s laughing at _her_ , but Rin simply opens the package and pops three sticks in her mouth. Not one, not two, _three_ , and Maki’s mouth opens with no words to follow. She lets Rin take the box of pocky, but not before hastily drawing her own stick and carefully placing it between her lips. Surely Rin can’t miss the subtle (and awkward) smile Maki tosses her way.

“Thanks, Maki-chan! You’re being weirdly generous today!”

“S-so, about _sharing—“_

“Wanna see how many I can fit in my mouth?!” Too late, the entire contents of the box are being fed one after the other into the vacuum of Rin’s maw. Maki can only helplessly watch as her chance to play the pocky game (and embarrass Rin, for once) vanish in seconds. Crumbs fly and the sticks waggle between RIn’s teeth as if mocking her.

Maki can feel the despair settling over her shoulders. What is life. Why is Rin like this.

Every last crumb from the box is gone in a matter of seconds. Rin cheerfully tilts her head and points at the final surviving pocky stick still dangling between Maki’s lips. “Are you gonna eat that one or what?”

Goddamnit. Maki tries not to grimace and instead winks, though it still probably comes off as a grimace. She’ll salvage the situation or die (of embarrassment) trying. 

“Not if you manage to take it from me… Rin.”

“Okay!”

And so she does take it. With her fingers. And she eats it with a stupidly oblivious little grin that’s still somehow cute in spite of that stupid obliviousness.

Maki probably should have seen that one coming a mile away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i havent been writing anything proper in a while and it shows


	61. warm

The rain outside is pattering like a million tiny feet. Frog feet, Rin had said earlier, even though it made no sense. But there _are_ frogs croaking somewhere, distant enough to be lulling rather than annoying.

Or it’s just the rain. Rin tiredly crawls up onto the couch and over Maki’s lap like a needy cat, only giving her a yawn rather than any words. It’s fine, Maki knows, Rin’s got her thoughts on her sleeve and it’s even easier to read her after so much time spent together.

“Thinking of a warm bath, later?” Maki lightly pushes at Rin to ease some of the weight off.

“Mmm.”

Her hair is splayed into a messy crown over Maki’s thigh. One of Rin’s legs is hanging off of the couch, the tip of her sock brushing against the floor back and forth like a pendulum. Rin lifts her head for a moment, bright eyes slowly blinking up at Maki, and hugs her around the waist.

“Hot soup, too!”

“Yeah, that sounds good.” Maki pats Rin’s head. She lazily works through the many tangles in her hair, only sort of half-paying attention to whatever show’s airing on the television at the moment. For now, it’s only more background noise to accompany the rain.

“Ow! You pulled too hard,” Rin frowns into Maki’s lap and hugs her tighter. Maki just scoffs and tugs at that particular stubborn knot again.

“Your hair is growing longer, Rin. You need to learn how to brush it properly.”

“Is it? Well, that’s fine, I’ll just wear hats more often!”

“Don’t be lazy. Or sloppy.” Maki yanks at the tangle until it finally comes loose. Somehow, Rin is still holding onto her and refuses to give up the lap pillow despite the cruel grooming. “Besides, you’ll look cuter if you don’t tuck your hair away. Maybe put some of it in a braid, or something.”

Rin is unusually quiet for a moment, no doubt trying to hide the blush on her face. “I-if you say so…”

The corners of Maki’s lips twitch into a smile. “I do say so.”

They both unanimously leave it at that. Maki continues to brush through Rin’s hair with her fingers, albeit much more gently now, as the rain outside nearly drowns out the soft chatter of the TV.


	62. stardust

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> pokemon au because i've been playing way too much pokemon

There’s something intense and lonely about the rolling hills at night, pockmarked with craters and burnt patches of grass. Maki always gets a faint shudder in her heart without fail every time she looks across at the splash of stars above them, barely illuminating the sheer vastness of the landscape spread before her, a reminder of how small and insignificant she is.

But it’s not so bad when Rin is beside her and excitedly pointing out every Minior that comes hurtling from the atmosphere. The hills light up with their colorful explosions when they crash to the earth.

“We can go down to catch some once the shower begins to subside.” Maki pulls her coat tightly around herself. It’s nearly freezing at this altitude, but Rin seems comfortable in a t-shirt and jeans. “It’s not safe right now with so many explosions.”

“I know that! You say the same thing every time.” Rin impatiently hops back and forth. She makes another _oooh_ noise when a cluster of Minior self-destructs down below in a brilliant burst of blues and greens and yellows. “Maki-chan, did you see those ones! It’s like fireworks! Sooo pretty!”

“That’s morbid,” she mutters.

Rin gives her an odd look, still smiling. “That’s just how they are. You know way more about them than Rin! But you always ask me to help you catch some for your research whenever there’s a Minior shower.”

“Only because _I_ don’t want to get caught in the explosions.” Maki huffs. She’s never said it out loud before, but Rin already knows that Maki just likes watching them fall together (and Rin has better aim with pokeballs than her). And then they’ll drive down the mountain to the cratered fields and be closer to the stars than anyone could ever be, and Maki will shout directions from a safe distance as Rin frantically tries to capture as many Minior as she can before they inevitably self-destruct when their cores are exposed to the air.

It’s dangerous, but it’s worth seeing the thrill and excitement on Maki’s face when a pokeball goes still with a click.

“I guess it _is_ kinda morbid,” Rin muses out loud. “We’re basically watching these little stars die, right?”

“They don’t exactly die. Stardust is infinite.” Without any sort of prompting, Maki shuffles closer and slips her hand into Rin’s, noting how warm she is in spite of the chilly air. “They’ll always come back to us, one way or another.”

“Infinite stardust, huh?” She likes the sound of that. “Then we can keep doing this for the rest of our lives!”

“Sure. Sure. Until we become stardust, too.”

It’s almost as scary and daunting as the long stretch to the distant horizon, thinking about _the rest of their lives_. There is no real end goal to her study on Minior. She supposes Rin is partially at fault for that, for all her animated discussions about the stars and space and the things that come from above. For now, it’s just something… fun. To live in the moment, like Rin does.

“I’ll catch a bunch of dozens tonight, for Maki-chan!” Rin loudly declares to the sky and to the falling clusters of Minior.

“Jeez, I don’t need that many.” Maki’s grateful for the cold air that had already colored her cheeks and ears and nose red. “Come on, we can start heading down now.”


	63. pretty

Rin fastens a steady gaze on Maki, watching in the mirror, utterly fascinated by the way she brushes through wet tangles in her hair. Maki’s back is turned. Her eyes are cast downward as she runs the brush through her hair with steady strokes, full of grace and posture. The only other times she’s like this are when she’s playing the piano or absorbed in a book. 

Rin’s fingers curl around the sheets. She’s always caught off guard by the captivation no matter how many times it engulfs her over and over again, like waves crashing against rocks.

So she blurts out without really thinking about it, “Maki-chan, you’re so _pretty_.”

Predictably, the brushing stops. Her head snaps up and she catches Rin’s stare in the mirror. “… Stop trying to embarrass me. Jeez.”

“But you are!”

Compliments do feed the ego. Maki sets the brush down and stands up, turning to face Rin with only the smallest of frowns. She slowly walks to the other side of the bed, but doesn’t sit.

“I know I can’t make up fancy poetry to put it in words, but…” Rin rolls onto her side. She presses her lips together in brief thought. “It’s like you only get prettier every day!”

They’re both infected with blushes almost simultaneously. Rin tries to say something else but fumbles over the words, so she shuts up and pulls the blanket over her chin. It takes Maki a moment to find her own voice, too, and she finally climbs in bed to join Rin.

“The things you say are more embarrassing than any sappy love poem.” Maki reaches to pinch her cheek. “Ugh! I can’t stand it, sometimes.”

“O-owieee…” Rin mewls, putting up no resistance. “But Rin’s only telling the truth!”

“I know! That’s the worst part. You’re so _honest_.” God, she can’t deal with this. Maki’s frown breaks into an awkward smile instead and she pats Rin’s face, and wraps an arm around her for a loose hug. “For the record… you’re really pretty, too.”

“Hey, now _you’re_ trying to embarrass me!”

“Go to sleep, Rin.”


	64. bruised

Unimpressed as always, Maki flicks one of Rin’s bruises, purposely aiming for one that looks particularly purple and fresh. Not too hard, but still hard enough.

“Nya—!”

“So what _really_ happened?”

Rin pouts. She’s still got twigs and bits of grass in her hair, like a half-assed bird nest left in the early stages of construction. As much as Maki would like to pick them out, she keeps her arms folded for now.

“Me and Honoka-chan were racing down this big hill! Then we fell. Hard!”

“And then?”

“What else…? Nope, that’s it.” Ridiculous. But plausible, considering the two morons involved. Rin swings one bruised arm to point at Honoka, who’s sniffling and dripping water everywhere in the corner with a blanket wrapped around her shoulders. “Honoka-chan even rolled right into the creek at the bottom of the hill!”

“You crashed into a tree, Rin-chan!”

“I know! It was really cool, right?!”

“Yeah, the coolest!!”

Maki whacks Rin’s shoulder and shoots a glare at Honoka. “Stop enabling each other!”

“O-owww, Maki-chan, it really hurts! Really!”

She keeps her hand on Rin, absentmindedly squeezing as she looks over her scuffs and scratches and bruises. Rin continues to squirm and pointlessly whine about how it hurts in between boasting with Honoka about how awesome they looked, and how fast they were going, and arguing over who _really_ won the race. Honoka sneezes. Rin meows. Maki sighs and roughly turns Rin around to face her, eyeing the damage done to her face. As much as Rin’s whining came off as excessive, the scuffs and bruises do look like they hurt.

“You’re lucky you didn’t break anything.”

“That’s okay! Maki-chan’s gonna be a doctor, so she’ll take care of me!”

“I’m not your personal insurance, idiot.” Nonetheless, Maki leans in to carefully, gently kiss a particularly nasty bruise above Rin’s eyebrow. She flinches but giggles, squeezing her eyes shut. It’s always a good day when Maki doesn’t mind being affectionate when they aren’t alone together.

“Heeeey, what about me?” Honoka finally pipes up after an unnecessarily long stretch of silence.

Maki dismissively shrugs, already moving onto Rin’s next bruise. “Go ask Umi.”


	65. affectionate

They’re supposed to be studying after school.

“Maki-chan. Maki-chaaan… I love you. I love you, Maki-chan!”

Supposed to be.

“I love you, Maki-chan! I! Loooove! You! I love you.”

Nozomi brought ear plugs. One pair of ear plugs. Nico thinks she ought to fight her for them, but she also doesn’t want to wear _Nozomi’s_ ear plugs. Ironically enough, she’s the only one at the table diligently going over her reading (Nico isn’t looking closely enough to see she’d somehow fallen asleep with her eyes open). Maki’s also turning through her book, but she clearly isn’t getting any work done with Rin all over her.

“Maaaaki-chan. I love you!”

So out of the four of them? No one’s actually studying anything they’re supposed to be studying.

“I loooove youuu—“

“ _Shut it!_ ” Nico finally snaps, pounding a fist against the table. Nozomi startles awake and nearly falls backwards in her chair, blearily looks around, and pulls her ear plugs out to see what’s up with this new development. Finally, something exciting’s happening.

Rin blinks owlishly at Nico, arms wrapped around Maki’s shoulders. They’ve been at it for… less than a minute, actually, but it feels like it’s been hours. Being pushed into this study group was punishment enough, but listening to Rin’s obnoxious affections is hell.

She would’ve thought Maki would have similar feelings, but obviously not if she hasn’t pushed Rin away.

“What’s _your_ problem?” Maki frowns, tapping her pencil.

“You know,” Nico says through a clenched grin. “I bet Rin would shut up if you just tell her to.”

“Who says I want her to shut up?” Maki ducks her head down a moment too late; Nico saw that little smirk. Rin sticks her tongue out.

Nozomi loudly yawns and stretches, her arm coming down upon Nico’s head like a very slow guillotine. She exchanges a split second glance with Rin, looks at Maki’s weak attempts to hide her mouth, and promptly understands the situation. It’s as clear as day and she’s surprised Nico hasn’t seen it yet. Too bad she was busy napping during the build-up.

“I bet Maki-chan likes it when Rin-chan gets super affectionate. Cute, right?”

“Yep, yep!” Rin nods and plants a loud kiss right on Maki’s cheek.

“Gross.” But Maki’s smiling, clearly pleased, and doesn’t even bother trying to argue against Nozomi’s claims. She’s come so far. It’s all Rin’s fault. Terrible, simply terrible.

“Yeah. Gross.” Nico, on the other hand, is _not_ smiling. She’d leave if it weren’t for Nozomi’s arm hooked around her neck, and she reconsiders fighting her for her ear plugs.

Or maybe she’ll fight all of them, just because.


	66. aquarium

“What’s _that_ one?” Rin eagerly points to a lumpy fish mottled green and brown. There’s a plaque right by the glass with its name, latin name, and a block of text that Rin would no doubt pretend is in some foreign language she can’t read, but this must be the twelfth or something-th time Rin’s asked Maki instead of reading what’s provided, so she’s clearly doing it on purpose.

It’s cute, but Maki is one to believe that aquariums should be enjoyed in thoughtful reverence, not with a bunch of babbling questions. Rin seems to believe the opposite. She can’t remember whose idea it was between them to come here for a date, anyway. Probably Maki’s. Rin would’ve wanted to go to a theme park, or something.

“An ancient fish from the dinosaur era,” so Maki says without missing a beat, completely straight-faced. “It’s carnivorous and only eats seabirds.”

“Nyaa, scary! What about _that_ one?”

“They make chicken nuggets out of those fish… but don’t tell anyone I said that.”

“Gross! What about _those?_ There’s so many! _”_

“When a big fish dies, it turns into a school of tinier fish.”

Honestly, she can’t quite tell if Rin is buying all the crap she’s saying or if she’s playing along as Maki’s playing along. Rin’s the naive type to believe in bigfoot and little green aliens, so who knows? Maki smiles to herself when Rin runs ahead to another glass window, the tint of her hair off in the dim blue light. There aren’t any fish in there, only clusters of large, colorful anemone.

“That one…” Maki says as she comes up behind Rin. She pries her off the glass and points to a particularly large anemone gently swaying in the artificial current. “Can be found at the very bottom of the ocean. Did you know? Sometimes you can find a special kind of jewel inside them. They’re so rare that they’re even more valuable than diamonds, but they’re really hard to get.”

Rin’s eyes grow wider and wider as Maki speaks until she’s forced to blink. Then she grins, and goes back to pressing her face and hands against the glass to stare down the anemone.

“Then I’ll dive to the bottom of the ocean to find one! The deepest parts! The parts where no one’s ever been to! And then I’ll give it to you!”

“You don’t need to risk your life over something so stupid, Rin.” Ah, maybe she’s taking it too far with these silly things, considering who she’s talking to.

Rin suddenly turns, looking so genuinely _offended_ that Maki almost takes a step back in surprise. “Maki-chan, my love for you isn’t stupid.”

“Ueh—“

Maki, of course, chokes on her own spit and she’s suddenly grateful for the blue light (hopefully) hiding the color rushing up her neck. Why does Rin always say these kinds of things out of the blue? It’s like she does it in purpose just to fluster Maki, but of course she’s not smart or devious enough to do that… is she? Well, whatever. Maki mumbles something neither of them can hear and pulls Rin away from the anemone exhibit, suddenly eager to go look at something else.


	67. about dreams

At precisely ten minutes after 4 in the morning, Maki’s phone comes to life with a series of loud consecutive buzzing.

Somewhat roused from sleep, she blearily grabs at it and manages to tap the red button. Or so she thought; rather than that, she had accidentally answered the call instead. Her eyes aren’t even open when Rin eagerly starts talking without waiting for the customary “Hello?”, loud enough that Maki can hear her without even being on speaker.

“ _Maki-chan! Hey hey, Maki-chan! Are you asleep? Rin was, but then I had the weirdest dream, so I thought I should tell you about it since I woke up—“_

Maki groans.

“ _Oh, good, you’re there! Okay, so there were these cats, except they had eight legs, and they were crawling all over the place and I couldn’t decide if they were cute or creepy?! So Rin started to pet them and then more and more and more showed up until they were crawling eeeeverywhere!”_

Now a little bit somewhat awake, Maki drags her phone over from her nightstand and squints against the bright light. She ought to hang up. It’s just a matter of aiming properly at the red button this time, but her finger wavers over the screen.

“Rin, I was sleeping.”

“ _Were you dreaming, nya?”_

“… Yeah. I think so.”

 _“Tell me yours, then!_ ”

“I’ll tell you at school.”

_“No no no, I wanna hear now! I bet you’ll forget it by the time class starts!”_

She does have a point. Maki tends to forget her dreams over breakfast, as she had never thought it particularly important to dwell over them long enough to print them to memory. What was Rin talking about, then? Spider cats, or something. She taps the corner of her phone and weighs her options. Sure, she’s annoyed at being woken up at this ungodly hour for inane chatter, yet it’s also somehow flattering that Rin chose to call her out of everyone else to talk about nothing.

Unless Hanayo’s a heavy sleeper. Oh, well.

“I think my dream had cats, too.” It didn’t, but Rin would like that.

“ _Nyaa, maybe we were sharing a dream! So spooky!”_

“Very spooky,” Maki finds herself half-smiling, but that might just be a result of her brain still having one foot in sleep mode. Whatever that means. “So, what happened to the eight-legged cats in your dream? I want to hear more about it.”

“ _Hehe, yay! Anyway, after I started petting the cats, one of them grew more legs…_ ”

They both end up dozing off in class later that day.


	68. movie night

The movie ends, finally, but Rin had already been crying for at least seven minutes. Or seven and a half. Not like Maki was counting, because that’d be weird. She knows the waterworks started around the time the dog arrived home, at least.

“You alright?” Maki asks, even though Rin clearly isn’t alright. She braces herself for the inevitable crash of Rin throwing herself onto her lap, getting tears and snot all over her shirt.

“I-It was so saaaad!!” Rin wails. She hugs her tight and presses her face against Maki’s stomach, as if to muffle her own cries. Maki pats her head. “Why do dogs always have to die in these movies?!”

“Dramatic effect? It happens so often it’s sort of cliché, honestly,” Maki nonchalantly says, even though she’d fought hard to keep back her own tears. She reaches for the remote and turns the volume down, completely uninterested in the credits and its melancholy violin music.

Rin lifts her head, pouting. “No, it’s not! It’s always sad! I bet you almost cried too!”

“I did not!”

“Anyways, why can’t you pick other things for our movie nights?” Rin finally sits up, sniffling and rubbing at her face with her sleeve. “Rin does like other kinds of movies, you know…”

Easier said than done. No romance— romcoms included, horror is usually a no-go, Maki has a weird rule about not watching Christmas movies when it isn’t December, Rin doesn’t have the patience to sit through dramas or mysteries, and Maki finds action films equally dull. So Maki typically ends up picking the selection for the evening, which usually includes animal movies; coincidentally, or not so coincidentally, they’re animal movies where the beloved family pet dies in an abrupt turn to bittersweet mourning at the end of an otherwise lighthearted family film.

“ _I_ think it’s fine,” Maki shrugs, and she hands Rin a packet of tissues she coincidentally, or not so coincidentally, had in her pocket this whole time. “And you like these movies too, don’t you?”

“Yeah, but…”

“Also…” Almost guiltily, Maki looks away. “You’re cute when you cry.”

“That’s why?!”

“Mmhm.”

“Maki-chan! You jerk!” Rin feigns hitting at her with her fists, but she’s too embarrassed to pretend to be indignant about it or put any real force behind the blows. “Is that the real reason why you always wanna watch these movies together?!”

“You can figure out that one by yourself.” Maki softly laughs at Rin’s half-hearted punches and sits sideways on the couch, offering her arms out. Because she _knows_ Rin can’t resist a rare invitation for a hug, nor can she actually stay mad at her for more than a few seconds at a time.

And just as she expected, Rin crawls into her arms, grumbling but nonetheless snuggling up against her, wiping her snotty nose against Maki’s shirt for good measure.


	69. laguz

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i finished Path of Radiance the other day so here's an AU thing!!

The camp is bustling with noisy activity and good cheer, in spite of their circumstances. It could be the fair weather— a lucky omen to the more superstitious ones, surely. Ridiculous, if Maki could voice her opinion to anyone who cared.

A few passing do give her curious glances, but no one offers so much as a nod or smile. It’s fine, she hasn’t been in the mood for conversation, anyway. Maki sits and looks up to the cloudless sky, squinting against the sun, wondering when… 

“Heya!” 

Her head snaps back down to reality. A cat laguz is closely watching her. Maki involuntarily shudders. 

“… Can I help you?”

“Rin hasn’t seen you around. New?” 

“Yes, I arrived with the reinforcements from Begnion four days ago.” 

“Oh! The pegasus knights, right? You came in like— whoosh! All of you guys, raining down from above and waving your beorc weapons around! It really scared me for a second!” The laguz makes a grand gesture with her entire body, eyes sparkling. 

Maki looks around, but she can’t see any excuse to leave. The laguz aren’t… shouldn’t be an issue. She isn’t young and in Daein anymore, when she was taught that they were nothing more than monsters to be slaughtered. 

The traces of her earliest predispositions still remain, however. She can’t help but feel unnerved, and perhaps even a bit disgusted, despite _knowing_ they’re people just like everyone else. 

This one here, for example, is no different from herself. On the inside, perhaps. Heart and lungs and a stomach and everything else. The laguz is still chattering on about the pegasi, hands moving too quickly for Maki to follow. She suddenly stands. 

“I need to go…” Maki starts, uncertain. She looks like she’s around her own age, come to think of it. Yes, she tells herself, she knows better now and has no problems whatsoever fighting alongside these sub-huma— laguz. In fact, if she wanted to, she could even befriend them… if she wanted to.

The cat laguz’ smile is so _friendly_ , though. 

“Aw, already? You know, Rin actually has really sharp eyes. I see you around the camp, but you never talk to anyone! Not even your fellow Begnion knights! Why’s that?”

“Because.” 

“Because?”

Obstinate and too confused for her own good, Maki just shrugs and impatiently brushes past the laguz. Her face is warm and she’s not quite sure why. No one else had so boldly approached her out of nowhere like that. What a weirdo. 

When she looks over her shoulder, Rin is still wearing that warm, friendly smile that Maki had no idea how to respond to.


	70. mira

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's a xenoblade x au but not explicitly so cuz apparently no one's played the game so it would make no sense to anyone if i used lingo and terminology from the setting!! 
> 
> rin would be a winged viper with the interceptors and maki would be a psycorruptor with the curators ftr

The sky is blue and the grass is green. The phrase “alien world” had always conjured images of fantastical landscapes that twist and jut and carry impossible hues under a radioactive sky, but the sky is blue and the grass is green.

Some called it fate, that the surviving remnants of humanity ended up on a planet like this.

“I miss Scorpio,” Rin simply says one afternoon, as they’re resting on their way back to the city. “I tried learning all the constellations when I was a kid, but there were so many and I was no good at finding them. But I always remembered Scorpio!”

“Mmh.” Maki can’t think of anything to say about that. A lot of things haven’t changed in spite of everything, her poor conversation skills apparently being one of them.

If she concentrates on the feeling of dirt beneath her fingers and the warmth of the alien sun on her face, she could almost imagine they’re on Earth and that it hadn’t been destroyed. But then a massive  _thing_ silently flies overhead, temporarily blotting out the light, a reminder that it’s all different and nothing will ever really be the same again.

“What do you miss, Maki-chan?”

“Everything, I guess.”

“No fair! You gotta pick one!”

But they both know it’s impossible. There are too many things they miss to even remember, let alone list off. Museums. Hiking trails. Playgrounds. Songbirds. Squirrels. Home.

Rin has her knees pulled up to her chest. She’s no longer looking at Maki, instead staring out at the horizon with an uncharacteristically pensive glaze over her eyes. It’s nearly unsettling. Maki nudges her when the silence begins to stretch on a bit too long.

“Hey, let’s go stargazing tonight if we aren’t given any assignments. We can try to find Scorpio. It obviously won’t be in the same place, but… we can try.”

Almost immediately, Rin snaps back to attention and she lights up. “Stargazing… yeah! Just like we used to, back on Earth.”

“Yeah. And if we can’t find it, we can always just make up new constellations.”

New constellations for a new world. Seems fitting enough, Maki supposes. She finally allows herself a slight smile, her first smile in what seems like eons, as Rin jumps up to her feet, her arms up and palms open and fingers splayed— an expression of tentative optimism for a future without museums or playgrounds or Scorpio. Maki stands as well.

“Hehe, you always have the best ideas!”

“Don’t mention it.”

She looks up to the blue sky, then at Rin, and decides that things aren’t so bleak after all.


End file.
